
Chandra’s 14-hour observation of the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A (Cas A) has given the best map yet of heavy elements ejected in a supernova explosion. These images are designed to show the distribution of some of the elements ejected in the explosion that produced Cas A. The elements are part of a gas that has a temperature of about 50 million degrees Celsius. The colors represent intensity of X rays, with yellow the most intense, then red, purple, and green.
