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NASA released a striking new image of the star cluster NGC 602
The image combines data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory with an image previously released by the James Webb Space Telescope of the NGC 602 star cluster
The ring-like outline of the wreath seen in Webb data (in orange, yellow, green, and blue) is made up of dense clouds of dust.
X-rays (red) emitted by young, massive stars illuminate the wreath
Chandra X-ray Observatory
It is one of NASA's premier space telescopes specially designed to detect X-ray emission from very hot regions of the Universe such as exploded stars, clusters of galaxies, and matter around black holes.
It was launched in 1999, aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia (STS-93).
Because X-rays are absorbed by Earth's atmosphere, Chandra must orbit above it, up to an altitude of 139,000 km in space.
It is part of NASA's fleet of "Great Observatories" along with the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitizer Space Telescope and the now deorbited Compton Gamma Ray Observatory.
It is managed by NASA’s Marshall Center for the Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C.
It is the world's most powerful X-ray telescope.
It has eight-times greater resolution and is able to detect sources more than 20-times fainter than any previous X-ray telescope.
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