Nearest supernova in 27 years explodes in M82 galaxy
Thursday, January 23, 2014 - 07:00
in Astronomy & Space
(Phys.org) —A supernova has been spotted in the constellation Ursa Major (between the Big and Little Dipper in the night sky) in the M82 galaxy (affectionately known as the cigar galaxy) by a team of students at University College London. The discovery was posted on the Central Bureau's Transient Object Confirmation Page which led to follow-up observations by other teams around the world. It's real, and not only is it bright enough for amateur astronomer's to view, but it's the closet known supernova explosion since 1987.