Are you ready for one of the most anticipated astronomical events in a long time? Of course, we are talking about the much talked about nova explosion that will occur later this year and will be visible in our sky, but do you already know what causes this periodic explosion?
The universe, in its infinite empty space and at the same time full of planetary-sized objects, explosions that would consume stars in a matter of seconds, areas so dense and heavy that not even light escapes their gravity, are just some of the things that happen out there in space.
There are times when events this massive and magnificent occur a few thousand light years from Earth, that’s right, light years. And thanks to its ”closeness” we can observe the event in one way or another.
Recently, thanks to research by several experts belonging to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, also known by its acronym in English as NASA, it was discovered that during 2024 we will be able to see a spectacular event in our sky, which would have already occurred many years ago.
NASA announced since February of this year that a nova explosion will occur 3 thousand light years from Earth, more specifically in the constellation of Corona Borealis or CrB.
In this constellation we can find a binary system of stars, in which one of them is a white dwarf that feeds on the other star in the system, this is called a ‘nova’, according to the Spanish Astronomy Society.
Every so often, after consuming unimaginable amounts of matter, a nuclear fusion reaction begins, causing an explosion in which enormous amounts of materials and gases are expelled.
Sometimes, this nuclear fusion explosion does not cause the disappearance of the white dwarf, so this same event is expected to occur several times for a time still unknown to science.
This is exactly how the dynamics of the nova that we will see in the Earth’s sky works, on the horizon to the northeast, between the constellations of Hercules and Bootes, a very bright star will rise in the sky, that is T Coronae Borealis, or TCrB, for its acronym, the binary star system that will form the explosion of a nova and that we will be able to see in the sky, as stated by NASA.
This event has already occurred on other occasions, as there are records at various points in history describing an event in the sky that is exactly how we will see it sometime between February and September 2024. Since we are already in July, the time is shorter, so we can expect it sometime in the summer.
To see this event, at first, it will be possible to see a very bright star in the night sky in the constellation Borealis with the naked eye. If we want to see this event, we will have to study where to look when it happens, we still have time.
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