This supernova shock wave plows through interstellar space at over 500,000 kilometers per hour. The Pencil nebula is thin, bright, braided filaments that are actually long ripples in a cosmic sheet of glowing gas seen almost edge-on. The nebula is about 5 light-years long and 800 light-years away, but represents only a small part of the Vela supernova remnant. The Vela remnant itself is around 100 light-years in diameter, the expanding debris cloud of a star that was seen to explode about 11,000 years ago. Initially, the shock wave was moving at millions of kilometers per hour but has slowed considerably, sweeping up surrounding interstellar material.

Imaging System – Planewave CDK17, FLI ML16803, 10 Micron GM3000
Exposure – HaO3LRGB, 29.5 hours
Location/Date – El Sauce, Chile/2020