Last colour photo before the supernova explosion in LMC
Last colour photo before the supernova explosion in LMC. This colour photo of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) was obtained with a 6 x 6 camera mounted piggy-back on a large telescope at the ESO La Silla Observatory, on February 23 at UT 01:00, a few hours before the supernova exploded. It is the last colour photo obtained before this event. Comparing this photo with a similar one obtained two days later, and which shows the supernova reveals a faint star at the position of the supernova; it is the progenitor Sanduleak -69 202, a 12th magnitude B3 I star.
Credit:
ESO
About the Image
| Id: | eso8705d |
| Type: | Observation |
| Release date: | 3 March 1987 |
| Related releases: | eso8705 |
| Size: | 1767 x 1383 px |
About the Object
| Name: | LMC |
| Type: | • Local Universe : Galaxy : Type : Irregular • X - Galaxies |
| Distance: | 170000 light years |
Images
