NASA's IXPE captures stunning new image of the Crab Nebula.

NASA's Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) spacecraft has mapped the magnetic field of the Crab Nebula in greater detail than ever before, revealing unexpected patches and asymmetrical areas of turbulence. The Crab Nebula is the remnant of a massive supernova explosion that occurred in the year 1054 and left behind a dense object called the Crab Pulsar. The IXPE space telescope is designed to examine the polarization of cosmic X-rays, and by measuring the polarization of X-rays from the Crab Nebula, the researchers were able to map the direction of the magnetic field in different parts of the nebula.