Astronomers identified a new kind of supernova. Supernovas represent the deaths of stars. Astronomers discovered a new type of supernova of a star about 10 to 100 times more massive than our sun.
Supernovas are the most explosions all the way to the edge of the universe.
Previously astronomers classified supernovae into two groups: core collapse and Type Ia.
Core collapse supernovae result from the explosion of a star that is 10 to 100 times more massive than our sun,
Type Ia supernovae result from the complete disruption of a tiny white dwarf.
The new Type Iax supernovae is the newly discovered one which are dimmer and less energetic than a Type Ia, according to astronomers.
Both previous types of supernovae originate from exploding white dwarfs, while Type Iax supernovae may not entirely annihilate the white dwarf.
The team calculates that Type Iax supernovae are about a third as common as Type Ia supernovae. The reason so few have been detected is that the faintest are only one-hundredth as bright as a Type Ia supernova.
No Type Iax supernovas are filled with old stars which have been seen so far in elliptical galaxies,. This suggests these supernovas come from young star systems.
“A Type Iax supernova is essentially a mini supernova,” stated by lead study author Ryan Foley, Clay Fellow at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.
“It’s the runt of the supernova litter.”
Researchers says new supernovae come from a binary star system made up of a white dwarf and a companion star that has lost its outer layer of hydrogen to the white dwarf, leaving helium as the main element. The outer helium layer of the companion star may ignite first, which transmits a massive shock wave into the white dwarf. It is possible that the white dwarf could ignite first under the influence of helium layer.
It appears that in a Type Ia supernova in many cases the white dwarf survives the explosion, where as in a Type Ia supernova where the white dwarf is completely destroyed. Scientists believe supernovae only occur once or twice per century in our milkyway galaxy but the astronomers have cataloged over 300 supernova remnants in our galaxy by proving the Scientists assumption is wrong.
The age of a supernova is determined by the scientist by considering the distance and the speed at which the explosion's shock wave races towards Earth.
One of the rarest known classes of a supernova is a Type Ibn. Astronomers believe these types of supernovae are the result of the collapse of massive stars that ejected massive amounts of helium prior to their collapse. The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, in which the CfA is a partner, could discover thousands of type Iax supernovae over its lifetime.
One of the rarest known classes of a supernova is a Type Ibn. Astronomers believe these types of supernovae are the result of the collapse of massive stars that ejected massive amounts of helium prior to their collapse. The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, in which the CfA is a partner, could discover thousands of type Iax supernovae over its lifetime.