| Title | Amateur Astronomer Tests New Camera, Catches Birth of a Supernova | |
| Date | Thursday February 22 2018, @01:41AM | |
| Author | Fnord666 | |
| Topic | ||
| from the was-it-a-boy-or-a-girl? dept. | ||
Submitted via IRC for FatPhil
An amateur astronomer has captured the birth of a supernova while trying out his new camera. Scientists believe this could be the first time anyone has photographed the initial flashing of a supernova—a phase which can last just minutes.
Researchers think the serendipitous snaps offer unique insights into the evolution of supernova, which are usually only pictured after this brief "shock breakout" phase. A new analysis of the surge of light is published in Nature this week.
[...] The discovery was monumental not just for Buso but astronomy as a whole. Researchers Melina Bersten and Gastón Folatelli, part of the team investigating the supernova in the Nature paper, told Newsweek these chance photos could be the first of their kind.
"We actually think this is the first time an observer recorded the appearance of a supernova literally on camera. Some supernova have been discovered hours after explosion. But, Victor Buso caught the exact minutes when the supernova was being born," Bersten said. Not only that, she added, but he had captured the evolution of this elusive phase.
Source: http://www.newsweek.com/supernova-birth-photograph-amateur-815041
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printed from SoylentNews, Amateur Astronomer Tests New Camera, Catches Birth of a Supernova on 2024-04-20 03:59:51