404 Nova Delphinus
Ever feel like the world is exploding? Well, it did ...
It didn’t happen nearby and not in
our time, but it nevertheless has been well documented and studied … in fact, the
expanding fireball of a nova explosion has been observed in unprecedented
detail for the first time (ABC science).
A nova is the thermonuclear explosion of hydrogen on
the surface of a dead star, a white dwarf. When a white dwarf comes into close orbit with a companion star, it can suck hydrogen off the other
star onto its own surface. On 14 Aug 2013 a nova exploded about 14,800
light-years away in the constellation Delphinus; the explosion was observed for 43 days. The 'new' star was named Nova Delphinus 2013.
Yep, I do get excited about this stuff. The beauty of it; breathtaking.
