Astronomers and amateurs alike are excited about a new star explosion visible in small telescopes.
The new supernova popped into visibility on May 19 in the Pinwheel Galaxy, (also designated as Messier 101, or M101). The galaxy is visible in a small telescope under dark-sky conditions, as long as you use a wide field of view and a low-power eyepiece.
Supernova hunter Koichi Itagaki, from Yamagata, Japan, first spotted the explosion, which was confirmed the following day (May 20) by telescopes of the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) in California.
Long-exposure photographs make the supernova easier to spot. The supernova was formed when a star, much more massive than our own sun, ran out of fuel to burn in its core. Since the core could not support the mass of the star anymore, the star collapsed on itself and created a gigantic explosion.
Several observers shared their excitement on Twitter, often aided by imagery or data as they talked about the supernova with the public.
source space.com
https://t.co/w8ruiGdwXG @Unistellar
On May 19th, a bright supernova – #SN2023ixf – was discovered in the spiral arms of the Pinwheel Galaxy, aka M101. The best part about SN 2023ixf? You can join in observing it along with the rest of the Unistellar Network! pic.twitter.com/IxdtqYTdLV— The SETI Institute (@SETIInstitute) May 24, 2023
photo credit the SETI Institute Twitter
