2024-03-27 19:52:32
The last “nova explosion” was in 1946, but the next one should be visible to the naked eye shortly, NASA warns.
Steve Haak / t-online
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“T Coronae Borealis”, or “T CrB”, is a double star located approximately 2700 light years from Earth. If it is not normally visible to the naked eye, this should change in the coming months according to NASA. The US space agency expects the star to erupt by September this year. A rare phenomenon that occurs approximately every 80 years under the name of a “nova explosion.”
The star will then be visible for a little over a week with binoculars and perhaps even with the naked eye. It should even reach the luminosity of the North Star. Then, the star will become darker again, “perhaps for another 80 years,” writes NASA.
The double star could be visible without even the aid of binoculars. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
The last eruption was observed in 1946
The last time an eruption of the double star, located between the constellations Bear Guardian and Hercules from the northern hemisphere, was observed was in 1946. And the eruption that caused it preceded took place in 1866.
It is the “T of the Boreal Crown”. a binary system composed of a white dwarf and a red giant. According to NASA, the two stars have come so close that the red giant becomes unstable and begins to shed its outer layers. The white dwarf accumulates this material on its surface. Its atmosphere then heats up so much that a thermonuclear reaction occurs – that is, the eruption that can be seen from Earth. In our galaxy, there are five other stars of this type, says NASA.
Glittering in the dark
And for those who are impatient, good news! Even before the nova explodes, astronomy enthusiasts will be able to observe another spectacle in the night sky. Approximately every 70 years, the comet “12 P/Pons-Brooks” is visible for a certain time in its orbit. It should be closest to Earth on June 2, 2024. The comet will be visible with binoculars, or even with the naked eye, in the night sky.
Discovered in 1812, “12P/Pons-Brooks” has continued to be observed since. It orbits the Sun in an elliptical orbit similar to that of “Halley’s Comet.”
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