It’s November now, and in the spirit of making slightly labored connections on the basis of shared syllables, let’s talk Supernovae. A Supernova is a star exploding in very ferocious, bright fashion. This occurs most likely as a result of either gravitational collapse of the star’s core, or in the case of White Dwarf stars, some event causing an overwhelming resumption of nuclear fusion.

What remains afterward is either a neutron star, a black hole, or a nebula. The header image shows SN 1994D as the bright spot upper-right of the galaxy (image flipped 180 degrees by me so that it would show up regardless of browser window dimensions).

One fascinating thing is that while many supernovae are observed around the universe using powerful telescopes, none that have occurred within our Milky Way galaxy have been observed by the naked eye since Kepler’s Supernova, in 1604. It was visible during daytime for weeks, being centered within 20,000 light years of Earth. 

 

Certainly the astronomical topic here is a marvelous rabbit hole to fall down; there are also other applications of the term “supernova” such as:

The Omaha Supernovas, a women’s professional indoor volleyball team. Look at this hecking awesome logo:

 

The Epiphone Noel Gallagher Supernova, a signature-model guitar for the Oasis musician, painted with a Union Jack theme, the name inspired by the band’s song “Champagne Supernova”:

Have a good Sunday everyone! 🌟