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SWIFT Ultraviolet Image of the Crab Nebula

Noirlab_m1-comparison-uv-swift716500main-cc_1024

noirlab_M1-Comparison-UV-SWIFT716500main-cc September 30th, 2026

Credit: NASA/Swift/E. Hoversten, PSU

The Crab Nebula is the wreckage of an exploded star, or supernova, observed in the year 1054. The expanding cloud of gas is located 6,500 light-years away in the constellation Taurus. This composite of three Swift UVOT ultraviolet images highlights the luminous hot gas in the supernova remnant. The image is constructed from exposures using these filters: uvw1, centered at 2,600 angstroms (shown as red); uvm2, centered at 2,246 angstroms (green); and uvw2, centered at 1,928 angstroms (blue). Read more.

Provider: NOIRLab

Image Source: https://noirlab.edu/public/images/M1-Comparison-UV-SWIFT716500main-cc/

Curator: NSF's NOIRLab, Tucson, AZ, USA

Image Use Policy: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License

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Image Details

Image Type: Observation
Object Name: Crab Nebula
Subject - Milky Way: Nebula > Type > Supernova Remnant

Noirlab_m1-comparison-uv-swift716500main-cc_128

Position Details

Position (ICRS): RA = 5h 34m 32.5s; DEC = 22° 0’ 54.8”
Orientation: North is 0.1° CW
Field of View: 6.4 x 6.4 arcminutes
Constellation: Taurus

Color Mapping

	Telescope	Spectral Band	Wavelength
	Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory (UVOT)	Ultraviolet (uvw1)	260.0 nm

Spectrum_base

Red

Noirlab_m1-comparison-uv-swift716500main-cc_1280

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ID: M1-Comparison-UV-SWIFT716500main-cc
Subject Category: B.4.1.4
Subject Name: Crab Nebula
Credits: NASA/Swift/E. Hoversten, PSU

Release Date: 2026-09-30T05:46:32
Lightyears
Redshift
Reference Url: https://noirlab.edu/public/images/M1-Comparison-UV-SWIFT716500main-cc/

Type: Observation
Image Quality
Distance Notes

Facility: Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory
Instrument: UVOT
Color Assignment: Red

Band: Ultraviolet
Bandpass: uvw1
Central Wavelength: 260

Start Time
Integration Time
Dataset ID: None
Notes

Coordinate Frame: ICRS
Equinox: J2000
Reference Value: 83.635615730036, 22.015225537845847
Reference Dimension: 3864.0, 3864.0

Reference Pixel: 1932.0, 1932.0
Scale: -2.7599905781471696e-05, 2.7599905781471696e-05
Rotation: -0.060000000000002524
Coordinate System Projection:: TAN

Quality: Full
FITS Header
Notes

Creator (Curator): NSF's NOIRLab
URL: https://noirlab.edu
Name
Email

Telephone
Address: 950 North Cherry Ave.
City: Tucson
State/Province: AZ

Postal Code: 85719
Country: USA
Rights: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License

Publisher: NSF's NOIRLab
Publisher ID: noirlab
Resource ID: M1-Comparison-UV-SWIFT716500main-cc

Resource URL: https://storage.noirlab.edu/media/archives/images/original/M1-Comparison-UV-SWIFT716500main-cc.tif
Related Resources

Metadata Date: 2026-09-30T01:58:50+02:00
Metadata Version: 1.1

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Detailed color mapping information coming soon...

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There is no distance meta data in this image.

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NASA’s Universe of Learning materials are based upon work supported by NASA under cooperative agreement award number NNX16AC65A to the Space Telescope Science Institute, working in partnership with Caltech/IPAC, Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, and NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The award is part of NASA’s Science Activation program, which strives to further enable NASA science experts and content into the learning environment more effectively and efficiently with learners of all ages.