Supernova Blast Recorded in 1066 Was Short-Lived

A little less than a millennium ago, a lonely star exploded about 7,000 light-years away. The event was so bright that people were able to read by its light at midnight. A study of the debris the explosion left behind revealed that the star's death was quick and lonely.

At this point, the supernova remnant called SN 1006 is all that's left from the massive explosion. Experts at the Institute of Astrophysics, in the Canary Islands, Spain, recently investigated the remnant, which is about 16.5 light-years across, Space reports.

In a paper they published in the September 27 issue of the top scientific journal Nature, they say that their analysis revealed no signs of a past companion for the supernova's progenitor star. The event is believed to have been a Type Ia supernova, which occurs when white dwarf stars blow up.

Usually, this happens in a binary system, and one of the stars survived the catastrophic blast. However, this doesn't appear to have been the case with SN 1006's progenitor star. What a way to go!

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Via: Supernova Blast Recorded in 1066 Was Short-Lived