The ultraviolet diversity of supernovae
Wednesday, September 28, 2016 - 07:01
in Astronomy & Space
Supernovae, the explosive deaths of massive stars, are among the most momentous events in the cosmos because they disburse into space all of the chemical elements that were produced inside their progenitor stars, including the elements essential for making planets and life. One class of supernovae (Type Ia) provides yet another benefit: these objects are considered to be standard distance candles. They result when enough material from an orbiting companion star falls onto the progenitor star to trigger it to explode.