N132D: supernova remnant in constellation Dorado (radio view) 1/09/1999
Click to return to main N132D page N132D is the remnant of an exploded star in the Large Magellanic Cloud. The Chandra image shows a highly structured remnant, or shell, of 10-million-degree gas that is 80 light years across. The remnant is thought to be about 3,000 years old.

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Image Credit: J. Dickel & D. Milne, ACTA.  
N132D is the remnant of an exploded star in the Large Magellanic Cloud. The Chandra image shows a highly structured remnant, or shell, of 10-million-degree gas that is 80 light years across. The remnant is thought to be about 3,000 years old. The Large Magellanic Cloud, a companion galaxy to the Milky Way, is 180,000 light years from Earth. The radio emission from N132D is due to "synchrotron radiation" from high energy electrons (moving very nearly at the speed of light) spiraling in the magnetic field of the supernova remnant. The radio structure traces out regions where there are concentrations of high-energy electrons and the magnetic field is strong. This is expected to occur near shock waves, which explains the similarity in appearance between the radio and X-ray images. However, note that the radio emission is strong in the X-ray "hole" at the lower right. This could be due to a bubble of high energy electrons, or a strong magnetic field region which has pushed the hot gas away.  
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