Jordanian Astronomical Society: Astronomers expect a nova explosion soon

2024-06-23 2024-06-23T14:46:58Z

Weather of Arabia - Dr. said. Ammar Al-Sakkji, President of the Jordanian Astronomical Society, said that astronomers expect a stellar explosion soon, which may occur in the year 2024 or 2025, according to several peer-reviewed research studies, and this explosion will happen to the star “T Northern Corona,” or the sparkling or burning star, and this star is not visible with the naked eye, but in the periods of its explosion. It is seen in the sky for weeks at an apparent magnitude similar to the apparent magnitude of the Pole Star or the North Star. There is global interest in following this rare explosion, whether at the level of amateur astronomers or specialists. The Northern Corona constellation will be the focus of their monitoring and follow-up during the coming period, except that the explosion and its date are in September. 2024, or in 2025, is not exactly certain, because repeat-explosive novae have a complex nature, and there is difficulty in predicting their explosions.

The binary star system consisting of a giant star and a white dwarf, known as T CrB, is located in the Northern Corona constellation, and is 2,500 light-years away from Earth. It is one of the famous novae, and the first nova to be observed using spectroscopic methods, and is famous for its dramatic and rare explosions. This stellar binary is important in astronomy, especially variable stars, such as a hyperexplosive star or a variable or renewed star, because it witnessed multiple star explosions, and one of the most famous explosions occurred in the years 1866 and 1946. It is important for studying long-term change, especially in the evolution of binary systems that contain a white dwarf and a giant. Red, as it contributes to understanding the evolution of stars and binary interactions, and is classified as a classic nova, and this type differs from supernovae.

What is the cause of the explosion?

The cause of these explosions is the accumulation of matter from the red giant on the white dwarf. When a sufficient amount of matter accumulates on the white dwarf, a thermonuclear explosion occurs, leading to a dramatic increase in its apparent magnitude from approximately 10 to 2.

Astronomy professor Bradley Schaeffer, who specializes in the light curves of this star, mentioned in his research published in the peer-reviewed Journal of the History of Astronomy, Volume 54, Issue 4, November 2023, and he is one of the astronomers who closely follows this star, that there is documentation of its repeated explosions in the years 1217 and 1787. The first recorded observation was 800 years ago in the fall of 1217, when Burchard, who was the abbot of the Osburg Monastery in Germany, noticed while observing the sky that there was a faint star that shone for a period of time, and according to studies of light curves, Schäfer predicted that the explosion would occur in 2024.4.

In another study by Schiffer, published in the Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society, Volume 524, Issue 2, for November 2023, he studied the light curves from 1842 to 2022 for this system and found that its apparent magnitude was equal to 2 in the explosion of 1866 and 1946, in addition to a predictive study. It indicates that there will be an explosion in the year 2025 and before 2026, as the previous explosion was 80 years ago according to the light curves.

It is worth noting that the Seal Observatory of the International Astronomy Center has been photographing and following this star for some time, and it is an Arab observatory that discovered a supernova months ago.