What does the smoother, broad appearance of the Eastern Veil suggest about the surrounding interstellar medium?

Answer

The shockwave moved into a region of more uniform material

The Eastern Veil's relatively smooth sheet of emission implies that the shock front expanded into interstellar material that was more uniform and perhaps slightly less dense in that direction.

What does the smoother, broad appearance of the Eastern Veil suggest about the surrounding interstellar medium?
SpaceastronomynebulaMilky WayVeil nebula