3208: SNEWS

2026-02-16T23:25:35Z

2605:9480:220:2200:0:0:0:165: explain title text

{{comic
| number = 3208
| date = February 16, 2026
| title = SNEWS
| image = snews_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x321px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = People say setting of fireworks indoors is dangerous, but I looked at their energy release and it's like 10^-40 foe; totally negligible.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by a Type Ia supernova that Ponytail slept through. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
[[Ponytail]] is showing [[Hairy]] her bedroom. Hairy asks about the large device on the ceiling, and Ponytail explains that it is part of the {{w|SNEWS}} (SuperNova Early Warning System). This detects {{w|neutrino|neutrinos}} (massless particles that travel at the speed of light, rarely interacting with matters) to give forenotice of type II supernovae, as neutrinos are produced in large quantities during the collapse of the star core, hours before the main photon production. She explains this gives astronomers warning, allowing them to observe the event with telescopes and other instruments. Hairy asks if this is a detector or some kind of telescope aiding detection for the SNEWS, but Ponytail explains that it is in fact a fireworks launcher, to wake her up so she can witness the supernova herself. Hairy, not wanting to be woken up by fireworks, leaves to sleep at his own house.

The title text is a play on the tremendous amount of energy released by a supernova. The [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foe_(unit) foe] is an esoteric unit equal to 10^44 Joule, on the order of the amount of energy released by a supernova. In comparison, human-scale amounts of energy—even relatively significant ones such as firework detonations—are negligible.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>

explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

3208: SNEWS