JACKSONVILLE, FL - Get ready to look up at the night sky! Soon, you might catch a glimpse of a very special star called T Coronae Borealis. While it might seem new, T Coronae Borealis is actually a white dwarf star that has been quietly shining for about 80 years. But in the near future, it's set to go through an exciting change known as a nova!
What is a Nova?
When a white dwarf like T Coronae Borealis goes nova, it doesn't create a new star; instead, it experiences a huge explosion that sends bright gases flying into space. This explosion makes the star shine much brighter than usual, allowing us to see it from Earth, even though it's about 3,000 light-years away! That's pretty close in cosmic terms.
When this happens, T Coronae Borealis will shine with a brightness around magnitude 2.2. To put that into perspective, it will be almost as bright as the North Star, which has a magnitude of about 1.98. Although it won't light up the night sky like a lighthouse, it will be one of the brightest stars visible, ranking as the 46th brightest star overall.
Understanding Star Magnitudes
You might be wondering, what do those numbers mean? The brighter a star is, the smaller its magnitude number. Bright stars are classified as "first magnitude" (1st-class), while dim stars that are hard to see are classified as "sixth magnitude" (6th-class). So, the lower the number, the brighter the star!
When and Where to Look
To see T Coronae Borealis in its nova phase, keep an eye on the sky over the coming weeks and months. It will be visible in the constellation Corona Borealis, which is located in the northern sky. Check the weather and find a dark place away from city lights for the best view. It's a chance to witness a rare and beautiful cosmic event!
What is a White Dwarf?
Astronomers have observed the white dwarf since at least 1217 A.D. But what exactly is it? A white dwarf is an old star that has run out of the fuel it needs to produce energy through nuclear reactions. Once a star like our Sun has used up its energy, it shrinks down to a very small, incredibly dense state, like the size of Earth but with the mass of a star. Despite its small size, a white dwarf remains stable and continues to exist in the cosmos, slowly cooling down over billions of years.