Supernova Remnant Puppis A
What you see in this image is the remains of a past star that has at some point exploded. The entire supernova is approximated to be about 180 light years wide. Similar to every other astronomical photograph, the colors are not true to what they actually are - but the soft pastel colors in this photograph signify warmed dust particles. Personally I find supernovas to be particularly interesting because of the variety of colors and the magical feeling they emit. Supernovas are believed to be the largest possible explosion (disregarding the Big Bang) in the entire universe, which is absolutely incredible to think about.
Puppis A is estimated to be 7,000 light years away from our location on Earth and was discovered in 1971, according to other sources. The star must have ended its life many many years ago for it to just be discovered some forty years ago.
Godspeed,
Melanie
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