Colossal star explosion detected [View all]
Source: BBC
[font size=1]Before and after: This event was more than twice as luminous as the previous record-holding supernova[/font]
Colossal star explosion detected
By Jonathan Amos
BBC Science Correspondent
14 January 2016 Science & Environment
Astronomers have seen what could be the most powerful supernova ever detected.
The exploding star was first observed back in June last year but is still radiating vast amounts of energy.
At its peak, the event was 200 times more powerful than a typical supernova, making it shine with 570 billion times the brightness of our Sun.
Researchers think the explosion and ongoing activity have been boosted by a very dense, highly magnetised, remnant object called a magnetar.
This object, created as the supernova got going, is probably no bigger than a major city, such as London, and is likely spinning at a fantastic rate - perhaps a thousand times a second.
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
Read more: http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-35315509
= new reply since forum marked as read