News Digging > Culture > How did the COW supernova get so bright so fast? A little pre-explosion gas.
How did the COW supernova get so bright so fast? A little pre-explosion gas.
How did the COW supernova get so bright so fast? A little pre-explosion gas.,When a massive star dies at the end of its life, the core collapses to form either a very dense neutron star or a black hole. At the same time, the outer layers of the star are explosively launched into space by the colossal energy generated in the core collapse. The blast wave is so powerful that the expanding debris lights up with as much energy as billions upon billions of times the energy emitted by the Sun, and in fact can outshine an entire galaxy. A supernova is born. But not all supernovae are created equal.

How did the COW supernova get so bright so fast? A little pre-explosion gas.

When a massive star dies at the end of its life, the core collapses to form either a very dense neutron star or a black hole. At the same time, the outer layers of the star are explosively launched into space by the colossal energy generated in the core collapse. The blast wave is so powerful that the expanding debris lights up with as much energy as billions upon billions of times the energy emitted by the Sun, and in fact can outshine an entire galaxy. A supernova is born. But not all supernovae are created equal.