Latest news with #BlazeStar
Forbes
11-05-2025
- Science
- Forbes
A New Star Will Soon Appear In The Sky — All About T Coronae Borealis
A drawing star map pointing T CrB in Corona Borealis with a red pencil Have you heard about the nova? Called T Coronae Borealis, also known as T CrB or the 'Blaze Star,' this very dim point of light in the eastern night sky after dark is set to dramatically brighten sometime in 2025. When it does, it will become visible to the naked eye for the first time since 1946 and for the last time until about 2105. A 'recurrent nova" — a star system that brightens briefly every 80 years or so — it's the only one of its kind that does so within the span of a human lifetime. However, unless you know what you're looking at and how to find it, you'll likely miss it. Here's everything you need to know n about T Coronae Borealis, in numbers: T Coronae Borealis is to stars — an expanding red giant star and a small, dense white dwarf star. As it expands, the former is spewing hydrogen onto the latter's surface. When the temperature of the white dwarf reaches around 18 million degrees Fahrenheit (about 10 million degrees Celsius), there's a thermonuclear explosion — and a new star in the sky for a few days. Crucially, the white dwarf is not destroyed, and the 80-year-long process begins again. That's how far away this event will take place. Although the star will seem to erupt in real-time, the explosion happened around 3,000 years ago. Traveling at light speed, it takes that long for T Coronae Borealis' light to reach us. It's the same for all stars — even the sun's light is eight minutes old. Everything you see has already happened — including the thermonuclear flash on T Coronae Borealis. That's how long it's been since the last eruption in 1946. Before that, it was 1866 — we have the records from previous generations of astronomers. Of course, the fact that it's 3,000 light-years distant means it's almost certainly undergone a further 37 thermonuclear explosions, the light of which is on its way to us. A red giant star and white dwarf orbit each other in this animation of a nova similar to T Coronae ... More Borealis. T T Coronae Borealis lies just outside Corona Borealis, a small, crown-shaped arc of seven stars whose name translates to Northern Crown. It's a small and little-known yet beautiful constellation in the Northern Hemisphere. The exact location of T Coronae Borealis is just outside the curve of stars, close to faint Epsilon Coronae Borealis. Find it now so you'll notice the sudden change when it does "go nova." To find Corona Borealis, start with orangish Arcturus in the constellation Boötes and Vega in Lyra — two of the five brightest stars in the entire sky — and look in between for the constellation Corona Borealis. Look east about an hour after dark, and you'll see it as a crescent. When it does flash, T Coronae Borealis will leap from +10 magnitude — which is beyond human sight — to +2 magnitude. That's about the same brightness as Polaris, the North Star, the 48th brightest star in the night sky. T Coronae Borealis will be visible to the naked eye for a few nights. Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Could a new 'star' shine above Kentucky soon? Why NASA is excited again about T Coronae Borealis
Astronomers have been waiting patiently for months for light from a distant explosion to reach Earth, and the wait might finally pay off, according to NASA. Scientists alerted the public last year about T Coronae Borealis, a binary star system that could go nova "any day now," experts said. Light from the nova's stellar explosion will make it seem as if a new star is shining in the night sky, though it won't stick around for long. While stargazers may have been disappointed the nova didn't shine bright in 2024, excitement has been growing recently, according to a May skywatching guide issued by NASA, after astronomers noticed T Coronae Borealis (AKA, T-Cor) suddenly dimmed, which is what happened before its previous nova in 1946. Here's what we know about T Coronae Borealis, dubbed the "Blaze Star," and why this nova is considered a "once-in-a-lifetime" event. Story continues after photo gallery. When can people see a rare nova explosion in 2025? Roughly anytime now, experts said, though the exact date isn't known. According to an article written last year by NASA, researchers believed T Coronae Borealis could go nova starting in September 2024. "We hope that it happens any day now," said Dr. Rebekah Hounsell, an assistant research scientist specializing in nova events at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in an earlier article. Hounsell cautioned that the exact date is impossible to pin down. "The timing of when it does happen is an estimate." Astronomers predicted the nova might appear in 2024. What's changed? Astronomers with the Planetary Society last year predicted a 70% chance T-Cor would go nova by September 2024. Obviously, it didn't happen. What's changed, according to NASA, is that astronomers have observed T-Cor dimming suddenly, which is a sign it might go nova sometime in the coming months. A video still from an animation provided by NASA, shows a white dwarf orbiting a red giant star. T Coronae Borealis a white dwarf could explode any time between now and the next several months and should be visible to the unaided eye for several days and just over a week with binoculars before it dims again. How bright will the nova be? The explosion caused by the nova will be so massive you'll be able to look up and see it in the night sky without a telescope, experts said, so it should be easy to spot. Hounsell said it will shine about as brightly as the North Star. "It's going to be very, very obvious," Hounsell told IndyStar last year. "The star is only 3,000 light years away in the northern crown constellation, so it's going to be similar to Polaris, which is extremely bright." That's roughly 17 quadrillion miles away. Even so, scientists with the Planetary Society said previously the nova explosion will likely be the brightest one witnessed on Earth since 1975. Rendering of a binary star system: The 'Blaze Star', T Coronae Borealis (T CrB), will likely go nova in 2024. What is a nova? The word "nova" comes from the Latin word meaning "new." In astronomical terms, it can seem like there's a new star in the heavens even though that star might be very old and at the end stages of its life. During a nova event, explains NASA, energy explodes from a white dwarf star. Hounsell said white dwarf stars aren't much larger in size than planet Earth. Usually they're too dim to see at night, but when a nova happens, the sudden explosion can make the star shine brightly enough to be viewed with the naked eye from trillions of miles away. What causes a star to go nova? Stars don't always play nice with each other, say experts. Most stars are bound by gravity to one or more companion stars, and things can get interesting — or violent — if these stars get too close. Sometimes when a small white dwarf star orbits a regular star, it can siphon off the larger star's energy. That's because a white dwarf star has about the same mass as Earth's sun, Hounsell said. Its gravity is extremely powerful — not as strong as a black hole, according to the Adler Planetarium, but roughly 100,000 to 300,000 times the gravity on Earth. "So material is being pulled away from the companion star by the gravity of the white dwarf," Hounsell said. "This material builds up in layers onto the white dwarf's surface and the layers get really, really hot, but the material can't expand." Eventually, the pressure and heat trigger a massive thermonuclear explosion, Hounsell said, which is called a nova. Story continues after photo gallery. What's the difference between a nova and a supernova? A supernova is the final, fiery explosion that can destroy a dying star. It can briefly outshine entire galaxies, writes and radiate more energy than our sun will produce in its entire lifetime. But while supernovas occur only once, a nova can happen again and again. After a nova explosion, the dwarf star remains intact and the cycle triggering another explosion starts over, which NASA says can take tens, hundreds or even thousands of years. In T Coronae Borealis' case, the cycle repeats roughly once every 80 years, which is why most people will likely see it only once in their lifetime. When did T Coronae Borealis last go nova? The Reno Evening Gazette noted the most recent appearance of T Coronae Borealis in February 1946. The last nova from T Coronae Borealis happened in February 1946. It also erupted 80 years before that in 1866. One astronomer described the event, saying, "In colour, the star appeared nearly white with a bluish tinge," according to documents preserved by IOPscience. The first recorded sighting of the "Blaze star" was more than 800 years ago, according to NASA. An abbot named Burchard in Ursberg, Germany, noted in 1217 that he saw, "a faint star that for a time shone with great light." Where you can look to see T Coronae Borealis nova explosion T Coronae Borealis can be found in the Northern Crown constellation, writes EarthSky, which you can find easily enough by searching for the two brightest stars in the Northern Hemisphere. Look for the Big Dipper and follow its handle pointing toward the star Arcturus. Next, find Vega, which is part of the Summer Triangle. By drawing a straight line from Arcturus and Vega, you'll find the constellation Hercules and the Corona Borealis, a horseshoe-shaped curve of stars. Just a little bit below the Corona Borealis, experts say, is where the Blaze Star should appear. The Blaze Star nova will be approximately where the little blue X appears on this star map, provided by NASA. Need help finding stars, planets and constellations? Try these free astronomy apps The following free astronomy apps can help you locate stars, planets, and constellations. How long will the nova last? The nova should last roughly a week, Hounsell said, reaching peak brightness in its first few days before fading away. How often do stars go nova? There are only five known stars in the entire galaxy that have nova events, writes NASA, but scientists believe the Milky Way experiences roughly between 30-60 nova explosions per year. These faraway stars are so distant they can't be seen with the naked eye because the light is obscured by gas and dust. What happens if T Coronae Borealis doesn't go nova this year, or at all? Then that would be interesting, said Hounsell. "We know roughly from historical records it's supposed to be around every 80 years or so, but this is unpredictable science," she said. "If the nova doesn't go off in the timeframe we expect it to, then that might mean something different happened, leading us to figure out more information, which is really cool. We'll learn new things. That's the point of science." How to say 'Uranus': Not to be cheeky, but you've been saying this gassy planet's name wrong your entire life. John Tufts covers trending news for IndyStar and Midwest Connect. Send him a news tip at JTufts@ Follow him on Twitter at JTuftsReports. This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: T Coronae Borealis dims, shows sign it could go nova soon, says NASA
Indianapolis Star
05-05-2025
- Science
- Indianapolis Star
Could a new 'star' shine above Indiana soon? Why NASA is excited again about T Coronae Borealis
Show Caption Astronomers have been waiting patiently for months for light from a distant explosion to reach Earth, and the wait might finally pay off, according to NASA. Scientists alerted the public last year about T Coronae Borealis, a binary star system that could go nova "any day now," experts said. Light from the nova's stellar explosion will make it seem as if a new star is shining in the night sky, though it won't stick around for long. While stargazers may have been disappointed the nova didn't shine bright in 2024, excitement has been growing recently, according to a May skywatching guide issued by NASA, after astronomers noticed T Coronae Borealis (AKA, T-Cor) suddenly dimmed, which is what happened before its previous nova in 1946. Here's what we know about T Coronae Borealis, dubbed the "Blaze Star," and why this nova is considered a " once-in-a-lifetime" event. Story continues after photo gallery. When can people see a rare nova explosion in 2025? Roughly anytime now, experts said, though the exact date isn't known. According to an article written last year by NASA, researchers believed T Coronae Borealis could go nova starting in September 2024. "We hope that it happens any day now," said Dr. Rebekah Hounsell, an assistant research scientist specializing in nova events at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in an earlier article. Hounsell cautioned that the exact date is impossible to pin down. "The timing of when it does happen is an estimate." Astronomers predicted the nova might appear in 2024. What's changed? Astronomers with the Planetary Society last year predicted a 70% chance T-Cor would go nova by September 2024. Obviously, it didn't happen. What's changed, according to NASA, is that astronomers have observed T-Cor dimming suddenly, which is a sign it might go nova sometime in the coming months. How bright will the nova be? The explosion caused by the nova will be so massive you'll be able to look up and see it in the night sky without a telescope, experts said, so it should be easy spot. Hounsell said it will shine about as brightly as the north star. "It's going to be very, very obvious," Hounsell said. "The star is only 3,000 light years away in the northern crown constellation, so it's going to be similar to Polaris, which is extremely bright." That's roughly 17 quadrillion miles away. Even so, scientists earlier with the Planetary Society say the nova explosion will likely be the brightest one witnessed on Earth since 1975. What is a nova? The word "nova" comes from the Latin word meaning "new." In astronomical terms, it can seem like there's a new star in the heavens even though that star might be very old and at the end stages of its life. During a nova event, explains NASA, energy explodes from a white dwarf star. Hounsell said white dwarf stars aren't much larger in size than planet Earth. Usually they're too dim to see at night, but when a nova happens, the sudden explosion can make the star shine brightly enough to be viewed with the naked eye from trillions of miles away. What causes a star to go nova? Stars don't always play nice with each other, say experts. Most stars are bound by gravity to one or more companion stars, and things can get interesting — or violent — if these stars get too close. Sometimes when a small white dwarf star orbits a regular star, it can siphon off the larger star's energy. That's because a white dwarf star has about the same mass as Earth's sun, Hounsell said. Its gravity is extremely powerful — not as strong as a black hole, according to the Adler Planetarium, but roughly 100,000 to 300,000 times the gravity on Earth. "So material is being pulled away from the companion star by the gravity of the white dwarf," Hounsell said. "This material builds up in layers onto the white dwarf's surface and the layers get really, really hot, but the material can't expand." Eventually, the pressure and heat trigger a massive thermonuclear explosion, Hounsell said, which is called a nova. Story continues after photo gallery. What's the difference between a nova and a supernova? A supernova is the final, fiery explosion that can destroy a dying star. It can briefly outshine entire galaxies, writes and radiate more energy than our sun will produce in its entire lifetime. But while supernovas occur only once, a nova can happen again and again. After a nova explosion, the dwarf star remains intact and the cycle triggering another explosion starts over, which NASA says can take tens, hundreds or even thousands of years. In T Coronae Borealis' case, the cycle repeats roughly once every 80 years, which is why most people will likely see it only once in their lifetime. When did T Coronae Borealis last go nova? The last nova from T Coronae Borealis happened in February 1946. It also erupted 80 years before that in 1866. One astronomer described the event, saying, "In colour, the star appeared nearly white with a bluish tinge," according to documents preserved by IOPscience. The first recorded sighting of the "Blaze star" was more than 800 years ago, according to NASA. An abbot named Burchard in Ursberg, Germany, noted in 1217 that he saw, "a faint star that for a time shone with great light." Where you can look to see T Coronae Borealis nova explosion T Coronae Borealis can be found in the Northern Crown constellation, writes EarthSky, which you can find easily enough by searching for the two brightest stars in the Northern Hemisphere. Look for the Big Dipper and follow its handle pointing toward the star Arcturus. Next, find Vega, which is part of the Summer Triangle. By drawing a straight line from Arcturus and Vega, you'll find the constellation Hercules and the Corona Borealis, a horseshoe-shaped curve of stars. Just a little bit below the Corona Borealis, experts say, is where the Blaze Star should appear. Need help finding stars, planets and constellations? Try these free astronomy apps The following free astronomy apps can help you locate stars, planets, and constellations. How long will the nova last? The nova should last roughly a week, Hounsell said, reaching peak brightness in its first few days before fading away. How often do stars go nova? There are only five known stars in the entire galaxy that have nova events, writes NASA, but scientists believe the Milky Way experiences roughly between 30-60 nova explosions per year. These faraway stars are so distant they can't be seen with the naked eye because the light is obscured by gas and dust. What happens if T Coronae Borealis doesn't go nova this year, or at all? Then that would be interesting, said Hounsell. "We know roughly from historical records it's supposed to be around every 80 years or so, but this is unpredictable science," she said. "If the nova doesn't go off in the timeframe we expect it to, then that might mean something different happened, leading us to figure out more information, which is really cool. We'll learn new things. That's the point of science."
Forbes
02-05-2025
- Science
- Forbes
NASA Urges Public To Look At Night Sky Now As ‘Nova' Nears
In the wake of 2024's total solar eclipse and rare displays of the Northern Lights, a third once-in-a-lifetime sight could be possible in 2025 as a star explodes as a nova for the first time since 1946. With T Coronae Borealis (also called T CrB and the 'Blaze Star') due to become 1,000 times brighter than normal and become visible to the naked eye for the first since 1946, NASA is advising sky-watchers to get to know the patch of sky it's going to appear in. T Corona Borealis is a dim star that will briefly become a nova (new star) sometime during 2025, increasing from +10 magnitude, which is invisible to the naked eye, to +2 magnitude, which is about as bright as Polaris, the North Star. It's a 'cataclysmic variable star' and a 'recurrent nova' — a star that brightens dramatically on a known timescale, in this case about 80 years. That last happened in 1946, so it's due any day now. Astronomers first predicted T CrB would explode between April and September 2024 after it suddenly dimmed in 2023 — a telltale sign that an explosion is imminent. However, that didn't happen. It was then predicted by scientists to 'go nova' on Thursday, March 27, 2025, but that also failed to happen. The 'Blaze Star' is about 3,000 light-years away from the solar system. When it does finally 'go nova,' it will become visible to the naked eye for a few nights. Unless you know where that star is in the night sky, it's not going to be an impactful event. NASA's Preston Dyches makes that point in a new blog post published this week — and it includes a valuable sky chart (below) showing everyone where to look. T Coronae Borealis is a dim star in a constellation called Corona Borealis, "Northern Crown," a crescent of seven stars easily visible after dark from the Northern Hemisphere. 'You'll find Corona Borealis right in between the two bright stars Arcturus and Vega, and you can use the Big Dipper's handle to point you to the right part of the sky,' writes Dyches. 'Try having a look for it on clear, dark nights before the nova, so you'll have a comparison when a new star suddenly becomes visible there.' He advises practicing finding Corona Borealis in the eastern part of the sky during the first half of the night after dark during May, 'so you have a point of comparison when the T CrB nova appears there."' T Coronae Borealis is a binary star system that consists of two stars at the end of their lives: a white dwarf star that's exhausted its fuel and is cooling down and a red giant star that's cooling and expanding as it ages, expelling hydrogen as it does. That material is gathering on the surface of the white dwarf. When it reaches a critical point, it triggers a thermonuclear explosion that causes a sudden and dramatic increase in brightness. The explosion only affects its surface, leaving the white dwarf intact, so the whole process can occur again and again, according to NASA. One Community. Many Voices. Create a free account to share your thoughts. Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas and facts in a safe space. In order to do so, please follow the posting rules in our site's Terms of Service. We've summarized some of those key rules below. Simply put, keep it civil. Your post will be rejected if we notice that it seems to contain: User accounts will be blocked if we notice or believe that users are engaged in: So, how can you be a power user? Thanks for reading our community guidelines. Please read the full list of posting rules found in our site's Terms of Service.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
‘Blaze star' might go nova soon; what to expect
SPACE (KXAN) — A rare nova could occur in the next few nights. Called T Coronae Borealis, the 'Blaze Star' and 'T CrB' by astronomers, the binary star system could produce an explosion visible to the naked eye. Located about 3,000 light years from Earth, the 'Blaze Star' is actually two stars. One is a white dwarf star, dead and shriveled, about the size of Earth. The other is an ancient red giant star that's slowly being devoured by the smaller star. According to NASA, during a nova event, the white dwarf releases a massive explosion. The star will stay intact after this explosion, unlike during a supernova, in which the star explodes. These explosions reoccur every few years. The explosion will create a bright spot in the sky that will last about a week. The last time the star's eruption was seen happened in 1946. The 'Blaze Star' is located in the 'Northern Crown,' a horseshoe-shaped curve of stars located to the west of the Hercules constellation. This constellation is found by looking east. According to NASA, the best way to locate the star is to find Arcturus and Vega, two of the brightest stars in the night sky this time of year, and drawing a line between them. The star will be visible about four hours after sunset this month. Once it explodes, the bright nova will be about the same brightness as the North Star. The 'Blaze Star' was originally expected to explode in 2024. The dimming of the star system that year led many to believe it would explode soonish. 'Recurrent novae are unpredictable and contrarian,' said Dr. Koji Mukai, a fellow astrophysics researcher at NASA Goddard, in a statement released last year. 'When you think there can't possibly be a reason they follow a certain set pattern, they do – and as soon as you start to rely on them repeating the same pattern, they deviate from it completely. We'll see how T CrB behaves.' It is important to note, because of the distance between the Earth and this star system, that we're actually seeing an explosion that occurred 3,000 years ago. Because the system is 3,000 light-years away, it takes 3,000 years for the light to actually reach us. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
