Myth vs Reality: Supernova Types

 

 

Produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute’s Office of Public Outreach.

 

All images, illustrations, and videos courtesy of NASA, ESA, and STScI except:

 

·       Night sky imagery created with Stellarium

·       Images of supernova in the Pinwheel Galaxy (SN 2011fe) courtesy of Peter Nugent and the Palomar Transient Factory, Thunderf00t (Wikipedia), and BJ Fulton/LCOGT

·       Type Ia supernova animation courtesy of ESO/M. Kornmesser

·       Taurus constellation drawing from Firmamentum Sobiescianum sive Uranographia by Johannes Hevelius, courtesy of the United States Naval Observatory

·       Black-and-white Crab Nebula image: Bill Schoening/NOAO/AURA/NSF

·       Drawing of the Crab Nebula by William Parsons, the Third Earl of Rosse

 

 

Written by Vanessa Thomas

Designed by John Godfrey

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 Top left, a black and white picture of a minotaur. Top right, a color picture of a supernova. 

Text, MYTH versus REALITY 

Myth side 

Text, All supernovae are the same. 

Reality side 

Text, There are different kinds of supernovae. Some supernovae happen when massive stars run out of nuclear fuel. Others occur when stellar relics called white dwarfs pull material from a companion star, become unstable, and explode. Supernovae can also happen when stars collide.