Astronomy enthusiasts are in for a treat as a rare celestial event is set to appear on the horizon. The star system T Coronae Borealis, located 3,000 light-years away, is expected to produce a nova outburst visible to the naked eye. This rare occurrence is predicted to happen anytime between now and September 2024, and when it does, it will shine as brightly as the North Star for a brief period.
But don’t confuse a nova with a super nova. A nova occurs on the surface of a white dwarf in a binary system, where it suddenly brightens due to a thermonuclear explosion caused by the accumulation of hydrogen from its companion star. On the other hand, a supernova is a much more violent and energetic event, often marking the death of a star.
The imminent appearance of the nova, is “a once-in-a-lifetime event that will create a lot of new astronomers out there, giving young people a cosmic event they can observe for themselves, ask their own questions, and collect their own data,” said Dr. Rebekah Hounsell, an assistant research scientist specializing in nova events at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “It’ll fuel the next generation of scientists.”
The first recorded sighting of the T CrB nova was more than 800 years ago, in autumn 1217, when a man named Burchard, abbot of Ursberg, Germany, noted his observance of “a faint star that for a time shone with great light.”
The last recorded nova in this system, T Coronae Borealis, was observed in 1946, and now, after decades, we’re about to witness this stellar spectacle once again. The anticipation within the astronomy community is palpable, with both professional and amateur astronomers eagerly awaiting the chance to observe this once-in-a-lifetime nova outburst.
What should stargazers look for? The Northern Crown is a horseshoe-shaped curve of stars west of the Hercules constellation, ideally spotted on clear nights. It can be identified by locating the two brightest stars in the Northern Hemisphere – Arcturus and Vega – and tracking a straight line from one to the other, which will lead skywatchers to Hercules and the Corona Borealis.
The outburst will be brief. Once it erupts, it will be visible to the naked eye for a little less than a week.
Dr. Elizabeth Hays, chief of the Astroparticle Physics Laboratory at NASA Goddard said part of the fun in preparing to observe the event is seeing the enthusiasm among amateur stargazers.
“Citizen scientists and space enthusiasts are always looking for those strong, bright signals that identify nova events and other phenomena,” Hays said. “Using social media and email, they’ll send out instant alerts, and the flag goes up. We’re counting on that global community interaction again with T CrB.”
