Posted at 8:30pm on 08 May 2007
A massive star about 150 times the size of the Sun has exploded in what is the brightest supernova ever seen, according to Nasa scientists.
Supernovae occur when huge, mature stars effectively run out of fuel and collapse in on themselves. But scientists believe this one was obliterated in an explosion which blasted all its material into space.
Astronomers say a star in our own Milky Way galaxy could be about to perform the same celestial fireworks.
The supernova star, called SN 2006gy, was originally discovered in September last year. The explosion peaked for about 70 days, during which it is thought to have shone about five times more brightly than any supernova seen in the past.
"Of all exploding stars ever observed, this was the king," Alex Filippenko, one of the Nasa-backed astronomers observing the phenomenon, says.
Nathan Smith, who led a joint team from the University of California at Berkeley and the University of Texas in Austin, says it was a "truly monstrous explosion, a hundred times more energetic than a typical supernova".
"That means the star that exploded might have been as massive as a star can get, about 150 times that of our sun. We've never seen that before."
He says the star, which is 240 million light years away, polluted the surrounding environment with metals and elements that are needed for life.
Scientists say that the star which exploded is similar to Eta Carinae, an enormous star in our own Milky Way, 7,500 light years from Earth. They say that before the supernova SN 2006gy expelled a large amount of material, similar in mass to Eta Carinae, prompting speculation that a similar fate awaits Eta Carinae.
Dave Pooley, at the University of California at Berkeley, says if Eta Carinae were to explode "it would be so bright that you would see it during the day, and you could even read a book by its light at night."
Mario Livio, of the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, said that Eta Carinae could explode at any time. "We don't know for sure if Eta Carinae will explode soon, but we had better keep a close eye on it, just in case. Its explosion could be the best star-show in the history of modern civilisation."
Copyright © 2007 Radio New Zealand
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/latest/20 ... _supernova
Star dies in brightest supernova
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Airconvent
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Talking about eta carina, this is one of the most beautiful pictures I have seen...
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/chand ... 7-072.html
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/chand ... 7-072.html
[80% Steve, 20% Alfred] ------- Probability of Clear Skies = (Age of newest equipment in days) / [(Number of observers) * (Total Aperture of all telescopes present in mm)]
