Chandra Release - March 20, 2014

Visual Description: DEM L241

The X-ray and optical composite image shows the supernova remnant DEM L241. The image is dominated by a dark, starry sky, which provides a contrasting backdrop for the brighter features of the supernova remnant at the center of the image.  In the center-left of the image, there are two bright areas of the nebula, colored in a pinkish purple color, and tucked in and around curving shells of gas and dust in shades of gold. The composite image of DEM L241 contains Chandra data (colored in the pink-purple) that outlines the supernova remnant. The remnant remains hot and therefore X-ray bright for thousands of years after the original explosion occurred. Also included in this image are optical data from the Magellanic Cloud Emission Line Survey (MCELS) taken from ground-based telescopes in Chile (gold with a touch of cyan), which trace the HII emission produced by DEM L241. Additional optical data from the Digitized Sky Survey (white) are also included, showing the many stars in the field.