The James Webb Space Telescope, launched at the end of 2021 and providing important images of space, seems to have finally caught its first supernova. Researchers noticed that there were some very bright objects in the latest images from James Webb.
James Webb’s supernova 3 to 4 billion light years away
Supernova is roughly the explosion of Big Stars that run out of energy. A very high luminosity occurs when a star reaches the end of its life cycle and explodes. It is thought that James Webb also caught these supernova remnants in the latest images he took.
Spotted by Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) astronomer Mike Engesser and his team, the new supernova is 3 to 4 billion light-years away, according to initial research. So that means it was the fading light of an explosion that occurred 3-4 billion years ago.
Astronomers believe that supernovae won’t last long because they’re remnant light, so James Webb is very lucky to have observed one of them, pointing out. Let’s also point out that the supernova happened billions of years ago, but it is seen today because the “travel” of light in space takes time.
“We’re going to need more time data to make a determination, but the data we have matches a supernova, so it’s a very good candidate,” said Mike Engesser of the Space Telescope Science Institute.
The James Webb Space Telescope was not originally developed to detect supernovae, so its discovery of the bright object surprised researchers. Supernovas can be used to measure both the life cycles of stars and the expansion of the universe.
So what do you think about James Webb and the supernova claim? You can share your views with us in the comments section.
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