CRAB NEBULA

diffuse gaseous nebula in the constellation Taurus; cataloged as NGC 1952 and M1, the first object recorded in Charles Messier's catalog of nonstellar objects. It is the remnant of a supernova that was observed in 1054 by Chinese and Arab astronomers to be as bright as Venus; markings in northern New Mexico depict a star near a crescent moon that might be a record of this supernova. Only three other supernovas have been observed in our galaxy since then. The explosion of the Crab Nebula produced a large expanding shell of delicate filaments. The filaments contain ionized gas in which unusually energetic electrons twist through magnetic fields at speeds close to that of light, emitting synchrotron radiation. Although this radiation is what makes supernova remnants visible in radio wavelengths, in this nebula it is so strong that observers can see the filaments through moderate-sized optical telescopes under good conditions. The nebula is also a strong emitter of X rays. At its center is a pulsar, PSR 0531+21, that spins 30 times per second. The youngest pulsar observed, it gives off radiation at radio, optical, ultraviolet, X-ray, and gammay ray wavelengths, as well as electrons that power the synchrotron radiation in the surrounding nebula.

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The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright© 2004, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Lernout & Hauspie Speech Products N.V. All rights reserved.

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Questia Books and Articles on: Crab Nebula
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books on: Crab Nebula  - 266 results

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1.
A Dictionary of Astronomy
Book by Ian Ridpath; Oxford University Press, 1997
Subjects: Astronomy--Dictionaries
...outer layers of a star, the Earths atmosphere, a nebula, or interstellar space see INTERSTELLAR ABSORPTION...star to be determined. See also BAND. absorption nebula See DARK NEBULA. absorption spectrum A spectrum that consists...
2.
The Three Big Bangs: Comet Crashes, Exploding Stars, and the Creation of the Universe
Book by Philip M. Dauber Richard A. Muller; Perseus Books, 1996
Subjects: Big Bang Theory, Catastrophes (Geology), Supernovae
...current picture of the early solar system, a primeval solar nebula of dust and gas gave rise to tiny planetesimals , or clumps...stars. This movement distinguishes them from galaxies and nebulae, which appear as faint but unvarying smudges in the night...
3.
Astronomy through the Ages: The Story of the Human Attempt to Understand the Universe
Book by Robert Wilson; Taylor & Francis, 1997
Subjects: Astronomy--History
...accurately date the supernova that caused the Crab nebula, an object of intense recent study. Surprisingly...the earliest known record of an astronomical nebula and we now know it to be the great spiral nebula of Andromeda, whose study in the early twentieth...
4.
The Restless Universe: Understanding X-Ray Astronomy in the Age of Chandra and Newton
Book by Eric M. Schlegel; Oxford University Press, 2002
...This object is similar to the Crab Nebula in our galaxy, the remnant of a...scientists detected X rays from the Crab Nebula. During one of those early flights...angular size. The data showed the Crab Nebula to be an extended X-ray source...
5.
Epic of Evolution: Seven Ages of the Cosmos
Book by Eric Chaisson, Lola Judith Chaisson; Columbia University Press, 2006
Subjects: Cosmology, Life--Origin, Matter--Constitution
...a rich repository of light illuminating a material as- pect of our Universe. To the cosmic evolutionist, planets, stars, nebulae, novae, galaxies, and all the rest are of vital significance if we are to real- ize our human place in the big picture...
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journal articles on: Crab Nebula  - 2 results

 
 
1.
Flattening Generalization Gradients, Context, and Perceptual Learning
Journal article by James Byron Nelson, Maria Del Carmen Sanjuan; Learning & Behavior, Vol. 36, 2008
Subjects: Changes, Manipulation, Sensory perception
...Telescope photos of the Eagle 1 or Crab Nebulae) could be seen through the viewscreen...and the current background (e.g., Crab Nebula) was replaced with the alternative (e.g., Eagle 1 Nebula). At that point, preexposure began...
2.
Bringing Physics of the Sun to the Public
Journal article by Timothy F. Slater, Michelle B. Larson, David E. Mckenzie; T H E Journal (Technological Horizons In Education), Vol. 26, 1998
Subjects: Satellite communications--Usage, Satellites--Usage, Yohkoh Public Outreach Project--Research
...color, filter wheel and use it to study an image of the Crab Nebula. Discover why scientists use different filters to study...galaxy? * Cindy, age 15, Singapore * How many rainbow nebulas have been discovered? - Rachel, age 11, Ft. Worth...


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magazine articles on: Crab Nebula  - 2 results

 
 
1.
A Pulsar on the Move
Magazine article by Charles Liu; Natural History, Vol. 111, June 2002
Subjects: Astronomy, Pulsars, Supernovae
...star a pulsar. You might expect to find a neutron star at the center of every supernova remnant. One of these, the Crab Nebula, has a pulsar at its center (spinning thirty-three times a second) and is often cited as a typical remnant, yet the...
2.
Houseware and Food for the New Millennium
Magazine article; USA Today (Society for the Advancement of Education), Vol. 128, January 2000
Subjects: Cookware--Product introduction, Ducks--Purchasing, Electric toasters--Product introduction, Outdoor cookery--Equipment and supplies, Outdoor cooking--Equipment and supplies, Salmon--Purchasing, Sausage--Product introduction, Sausages--Product introduction, Toasters--Product introduction
...or blend cafe au lait, mango, or Bananas Foster frozen drinks from preprepared packaged mixes. Many Cajun and Creole dishes--crab cakes, croquettes, pork chops, fried chicken, etc.--live or die with their breading. A dull coating dooms a dish, no matter how...


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newspaper articles on: Crab Nebula  - 8 results

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1.
Teams Set for 'Super Saturday'
Newspaper article by Jody Foldesy; The Washington Times, November 6, 1997
...next interplanetary collisions. And it wont take a telescope to see it, either. Forget the Andromeda galaxy or the Crab nebula. You want to know where the next cataclysmic events will take place? Right here, on planet Earth of the Milky Way...
2.
Planets on Show on August Nights
Newspaper article; The NewsMail (Bundaberg, Australia), July 27, 2009
Subjects: Astronomy
...rising around 3am and is just below the Hyades star cluster in Taurus (the bull), on the 17th it will be close to the Crab Nebula which is near Zeta Tauri - the star that marks the tip of western horn of the bull and at the same time the Moon will...
3.
Celestial Expert with an Eye on Beer World
Newspaper article; The Journal (Newcastle, England), March 23, 2007
...Scotland. Conversation with Professor John C Brown orbits around black holes, lunar eclipses, gamma rays, Hale Bop, the Crab Nebula and Deuchars IPA. John, whose day-job is Regius Professor of Astronomy at Glasgow University, enjoys beer almost as...
4.
Rock the Walls Concert
Newspaper article; Manila Bulletin, August 19, 2004
...changes without losing much of their pop appeal. Crab Nebula closed the set, as the Mongols failed to make it...they were still on the North Expressway during Crab Nebulas set). Crab Nebulas sound, honestly speaking, still capitalizes on...
5.
POSTPUZZLER: 50 for Fun; Phil Brown's Trivia Quiz
Newspaper article; Daily Post (Liverpool, England), August 3, 2006
Subjects: Electric utilities, PowerGen PLC
...was the Great Schism between Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism - also the year when the supernova that left behind the Crab Nebula was visible in daylight? 46 Min, Lord of the Eastern Desert, whose sacred plant was the lettuce, was worshipped by which...
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encyclopedia articles on: Crab Nebula  - 10 results

       More encyclopedia Results: 1-10 >>  
 
1.
Crab Nebula
Encyclopedia article; The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2009
CRAB NEBULA diffuse gaseous nebula in the constellation Taurus; cataloged as...supernovas have been observed in our galaxy since then. The explosion of the Crab Nebula produced a large expanding shell of delicate filaments. The filaments contain...
2.
Messier Catalog
Encyclopedia article; The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2009
...frequently used to refer to the brighter nebulae and star clusters; for example, M31 is the Andromeda Galaxy, M1 the Crab Nebula, M42 the Great Nebula in Orion, and M45 the Pleiades. ____________________ Copyright 2009 Columbia University Press...
3.
Zwicky, Fritz
Encyclopedia article; The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2009
...explain their occurrence. Decades before the observational discovery of neutron stars , Zwicky suggested that the Crab Nebula in Taurus originated in a supernova. He is also known for his study of jet propulsion, cosmic rays, crystals, and slow...
4.
Shklovsky, Iosif Samuilovich
Encyclopedia article; The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2009
...and nonthermal radio waves in the Milky Way. He is noted especially for his suggestion that the radiation from the Crab Nebula is due to synchrotron radiation , in which unusually energetic electrons twist through magnetic fields at speeds...
5.
Synchrotron Radiation
Encyclopedia article; The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2009
...astronomy, synchrotron radiation has been suggested as the mechanism for producing strong celestial radio sources like the Crab Nebula (see radio astronomy ). Synchrotron radiation is employed in a host of applications, ranging from solid-state physics...
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