WANA (Aug 24) – American astronomers, working in collaboration with Iranian scientist Mehdi Zamani, have successfully captured the moment of a supernova explosion using the Hubble Space Telescope.

 

Hubble photographed both the before and after stages of a star’s brilliant explosion. The contrast between the two images—taken a year apart—demonstrates just how luminous a supernova can be and how its brightness fades over time.

 

The explosion, designated SN 2018gv, was discovered in the spiral galaxy NGC 2525, located about 70 million light-years from Earth.

 

According to NASA, the supernova was first identified in early 2018 by amateur astronomer Koichi Itagaki, after which Hubble began monitoring it.

 

SN 2018gv is classified as a Type Ia supernova, a rare category of stellar explosion. These events are also known as “standard candles” because they reach a consistent peak brightness, allowing astronomers to calculate cosmic distances with high precision.

 

By comparing their intrinsic brightness with their apparent brightness from Earth, scientists can determine the exact distance to these exploding stars.

 

Astronomers also use this type of supernova to study the expansion rate of the universe and how it changes over time. NASA’s upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, still under development, is being designed specifically to investigate such cosmic explosions—looking further back in time than Hubble and offering more precise measurements of the universe’s expansion.

Imaging of a Rare Supernova With Hubble

Imaging of a Rare Supernova With Hubble. Social media/ WANA News Agency