According to a last Sunday Star-Advertiser article, the star Betelgeuse (the upper right {our left} shoulder of Orion) is a candidate for the next galactic super-nova.
The last visible supernova was in 1054 AD, and resulted in the Crab Nebula as its remnant.
It is likely to be the brightest object in our sky, second to the sun. Brighter than the full moon, it should be visible day and night, for perhaps as long as a week.
Naturally, some astronomers downplay the prediction, saying that it may go nova in the next five minutes or the next million years. Don't hold your breath!
Some astronomers predict it will go nova in 2011 or 2012.
I wonder what star went nova in the year '0' AD?
"I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I've watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in the rain."
Rutger Hauer, Blade Runner, 1982
The last visible supernova was in 1054 AD, and resulted in the Crab Nebula as its remnant.
It is likely to be the brightest object in our sky, second to the sun. Brighter than the full moon, it should be visible day and night, for perhaps as long as a week.
Naturally, some astronomers downplay the prediction, saying that it may go nova in the next five minutes or the next million years. Don't hold your breath!
Some astronomers predict it will go nova in 2011 or 2012.
I wonder what star went nova in the year '0' AD?
"I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I've watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in the rain."
Rutger Hauer, Blade Runner, 1982
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