NASA's Swift Narrows Down Origin of Important Supernova Class
This image combines all Swift X-ray Telescope observations for 53 Type Ia supernovae. The images are stacked to align the supernovae at the center (circled in inset), giving a total effective exposure of 35.3 days -- the deepest-ever X-ray observation of Type Ia supernovae. Unresolved hot gas within the host galaxies produces the diffuse orange glow, while yellow and orange blobs reveal X-ray binaries in the host galaxies as well as foreground stars in our own. No additional X-ray emission is visible at the position of the stacked supernovae, placing strong limits on their host systems. Credit: NASA/Swift/Stefan Immler
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