NGC 2736. The Pencil Nebula, higher resolution

 

 

Click on the image for a full resolution version

 

NGC 2736, also known as the Pencil Nebula or Herschel’s Ray, was discovered by John Herschel in 1835. This is a higher resolution version of a previous image taken with a 20″ telescope that can be seen here. It is part of the Vela Supernova Remnant (see a wide field image here) and located about 4.5 degrees east of its central bubble. Like most supernova remnants, it is better imaged in narrowband, with Halpha and OIII filters. As usual with this kind of images in this website, the colors have been coded in such a way as to provide “natural” colors, trying to reproduce the nebula’s spectrum. The supernova that gave birth to this nebula, exploded about 12,000 years ago and its shockwave expands at a speed of about 300,000 miles per hour (500,000 km/h).