False-colour radio map of the Crab Nebula (M1, NGC 1952), taken at a wavelength of 9 millimetres using the 100-metre Effelsberg radio telescope. The Crab Nebula is a supernova remnant about 6000 light years away in the constellation of Taurus. It is the remnant of a catastrophic stellar explosion which was observed by Chinese and Japanese astronomers in 1054 AD. At its centre is the Crab pulsar, a rapidly spinning neutron star which is the tiny, dense remnant of the star which exploded. The map shows radio emission from electrons spiralling in the pulsar's strong magnetic fields.