Astronomy and SpaceStars |
What is a supernova? |
A supernova is the death explosion of a massive star. Immediately after the explosion, the brightness of the star can outshine the entire galaxy, followed by a gradual fading. A supernova is a fairly rare event. The last supernova observed in our galaxy was in 1604. In February 1987, Supernova 1987A appeared in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a nearby galaxy.