Hackaday Links: July 5, 2020

Remember all the hubbub over Betelgeuse back in February? For that matter, do you even remember February? If you do, you might recall that the red giant in Orion was steadily dimming, which some took as a portent of an impending supernova. That obviously didn’t happen, but we now seem …read more

Continue reading Hackaday Links: July 5, 2020

Giant star spots likely to blame for Betelgeuse supernova scare

A team of scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy believe that unusually large, cool surface spots are the most likely explanation for the recent dimming of the red giant star Betelgeuse that raised fears it was going supernova.Continue … Continue reading Giant star spots likely to blame for Betelgeuse supernova scare

“Supernova machine” recreates cosmic blasts in the lab

Supernovae are some of the most energetic events in the universe, and the resulting nebulas are a favorite for stargazers. To better understand the physics behind them, researchers at Georgia Tech have created a “supernova machine” in the lab.Continue … Continue reading “Supernova machine” recreates cosmic blasts in the lab

“Cow” and “Koala” lead explosive new class of space signals

The universe is full of powerful explosions from various sources, and now astronomers have described a brand new class of space signals. Named fast blue optical transients (FBOTs), these events are very bright and throw off incredible amounts of energy… Continue reading “Cow” and “Koala” lead explosive new class of space signals

Astronomers spot the brightest and most energetic supernova on record

Astronomers have spotted the brightest and most energetic supernova ever recorded. The event, known as SN2016aps, may have been the result of two stars merging and then exploding, before the dust had completely settled.Continue ReadingCategory: Space, … Continue reading Astronomers spot the brightest and most energetic supernova on record

Hackaday Links: March 1, 2020

Talk about buried treasure: archeologists in Germany have – literally – unearthed a pristine Soviet spy radio, buried for decades outside of Cologne. While searching for artifacts from a Roman empire settlement, the archeologists found a pit containing the Soviet R-394KM transceiver, built in 1987 and apparently buried shortly thereafter …read more

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Interstellar isotopes found in Antarctica were forged from supernovae

In the pure white snow of Antarctica, scientists have found rare isotopes that don’t occur naturally on Earth. The isotope, known as iron-60, is usually forged in the crucible of supernova explosions, and the researchers believe it fell to Ea… Continue reading Interstellar isotopes found in Antarctica were forged from supernovae

Ancient white dwarf explosions seem to disobey long-established "rules"

White dwarf stars have mostly been thought to follow very specific “rules” – if they’re over a certain mass limit, they’ll explode in a supernova with a very predictable brightness and time. But now Caltech astronomers have found a strange tw… Continue reading Ancient white dwarf explosions seem to disobey long-established "rules"

White dwarf supernova observation is a first for NASA's TESS mission

Artist concept of the TESS spacecraft which recently observed a supernova and the elemental content of ...

NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) was built to search for new planets, but astronomers at Ohio State discovered that it could also observe supernovas created by exploding white dwarf stars. This development means we might soon have a better idea about why they explode, and what they leave behind in the process.

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Continue Reading White dwarf supernova observation is a first for NASA’s TESS mission

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Continue reading White dwarf supernova observation is a first for NASA's TESS mission

First detection of polarized radio waves from gamma ray burst sheds light on collapsing stars

The first polarized light from a gamma ray burst seven billion light years away is helping astronomers to gain a better understanding of collapsing stars and other high-energy phenomena. Originating from gamma-ray burst GRB 190114C in the con… Continue reading First detection of polarized radio waves from gamma ray burst sheds light on collapsing stars