While examining a nearby supernova with NASA’s Fermi gamma-ray space telescope, an effort to discover how these stellar explosions ignite charged particles called cosmic rays, scientists have uncovered a bigger mystery. The team found that the supernova, named SN 2023ixf, completely lacks the gamma-ray emissions that should be present when cosmic ray particles are accelerated … Read more
Scientists may have discovered how a supernova relatively close to Earth became adorned with a remarkable “string of pearls” formation. Supernova 1987A (SN 1987A) represents the remnants of a massive cosmic explosion that ripped apart a massive star and left behind a neutron star surrounded by stellar material. It is located in a satellite galaxy … Read more
Using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), astronomers have ended a nearly decade-long game of hide-and-seek in the sky after discovering a neutron star in the wreckage of a stellar explosion. Supernova 1987A represents the remains of an exploded star that once had a mass about 8 to 10 times that of the Sun. It … Read more
Astronomers have discovered a previously unknown source of cosmic dust. Why is it important to detect this dust? Well, these particles actually act as building blocks for stars. The international team found that such dust can be created by a type of cosmic explosion that occurs when a dead white dwarf star removes material from … Read more
If aliens synchronize their signals with the light coming from supernova 1987A, then the… search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) is on the case. Scientists at the institute say they may be able to find such signals by looking for them on what is called the ‘SETI ellipsoid’. About 167,600 years ago, a blue supergiant exploded … Read more