Difference between revisions of "Supernova"
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[[Image:Crab vlt big.jpg|right|thumb|The Crab Nebula]] | [[Image:Crab vlt big.jpg|right|thumb|The Crab Nebula]] | ||
| − | A supernova is the | + | A '''supernova''' is a galactic explosion involving a star at the end of it's life, when its nuclear fuel is exhausted and it is no longer supported by the release of nuclear energy. If the star is particularly massive, then its core will collapse and in so doing will release a huge amount of energy. This will cause a blast wave that ejects the star's envelope into interstellar space. The result of the collapse may be, in some cases, a rapidly rotating neutron star that can be observed many years later as a radio pulsar. |
| − | + | While many supernovae have been seen in nearby galaxies, they are relatively rare events in our own galaxy. The last to be seen was Kepler's star in 1604. This remnant has been studied by many X-ray astronomy satellites, including ROSAT. There are, however, many remnants of Supernovae explosions in our galaxy, that are seen as X-ray shell like structures caused by the shock wave propagating out into the interstellar medium. Another famous remnant was observed in 1054, when Chinese astronomers recorded a supernova so bright that it was visible during the day. The explosion left behind a [[pulsar]] and a huge cloud of gas and dust known as the [[Crab Nebula]], which still can be seen today with a pulsar in the center, rotating 30 times a second and emiting X-rays in a fashion similar to a lighthouse. [http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/supernova_worldbook.html]. | |
==External links== | ==External links== | ||
Revision as of 08:10, September 17, 2007
A supernova is a galactic explosion involving a star at the end of it's life, when its nuclear fuel is exhausted and it is no longer supported by the release of nuclear energy. If the star is particularly massive, then its core will collapse and in so doing will release a huge amount of energy. This will cause a blast wave that ejects the star's envelope into interstellar space. The result of the collapse may be, in some cases, a rapidly rotating neutron star that can be observed many years later as a radio pulsar.
While many supernovae have been seen in nearby galaxies, they are relatively rare events in our own galaxy. The last to be seen was Kepler's star in 1604. This remnant has been studied by many X-ray astronomy satellites, including ROSAT. There are, however, many remnants of Supernovae explosions in our galaxy, that are seen as X-ray shell like structures caused by the shock wave propagating out into the interstellar medium. Another famous remnant was observed in 1054, when Chinese astronomers recorded a supernova so bright that it was visible during the day. The explosion left behind a pulsar and a huge cloud of gas and dust known as the Crab Nebula, which still can be seen today with a pulsar in the center, rotating 30 times a second and emiting X-rays in a fashion similar to a lighthouse. [1].