Editing 2878: Supernova
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==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
− | + | {{incomplete|Created by THE NEAREST STAR GOING SUPERNOVA (SPOILER ALERT: YES THE SUN) - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}} | |
+ | {{w|Supernovae}} are catastrophic events in which a heavy star collapses and then explodes when its fuels run out and it can no longer produce enough energy to fight it's own gravity. | ||
− | + | These are some of the most interesting events for astronomers to observe, and they can use them to glean information about the universe. | |
− | + | This comic shows a graph that displays how happy astronomers would be when they discover a new supernova based on how far away it is from Earth. | |
− | Many astronomers | + | The further away they are the less details can be learned from them and thus this will not make the astronomers as happy as if they where closer by. Many astronomers began their career choice because the enjoyed watching the stars in the night sky. And the ultimate astronomical event to observe with the naked eye, would be a super nova explosion in our own galaxy the {{w|Milky Way}}, preferably clearly visible from Earth. |
− | + | One such supernova candidate that has been mentioned a lot lately is {{w|Betelgeuse}}, a red giant that draws the top part of the left shoulder in the constellation of Orion, and the star is located about 430 light years from the Sun. It has been pulsating, dimming and brightening over short time scales, compared to the tens of millions of years such a big star is expected to burn. There could easily go several thousand years before it goes supernova, but it could also already have happened, and we are just waiting for the light to reach Earth. And it will go supernova! Betelgeuse should be far enough away from Earth that it would be safe enough for life on Earth (See for instance [https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/space-science/earth-danger-betelgeuse-supernova Is Earth in danger if Betelgeuse goes supernova?] where Astronomer Patrick Moore answers: No to the question). | |
− | There | ||
− | + | When Betelgeuse goes supernova it will outshine all other stars in the night sky, maybe even be competing with the Moon, and thus it is not unlikely that it will be visible during day time. This would be a dream come true for many astronomers and any lay people just remotely interested in the night sky. In the first [[1644: Stargazing]] comic the wish that it would go supernova (in [[Randall|Randall's]] lifetime) is clearly expressed. | |
− | This is the second comic in a row that mentions exploding stars | + | Since this should be safe for us, and since it would be a spectacle not seen for hundred of years here on Earth, this would make the astronomers very happy, not just from all they could learn, but also from just gazing at the sky with the new star! |
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+ | But if a supernova gets closer than say 100 lightyears the supernovae might be too close, so its radiation could destroy life on earth, or at least affect it very much. So obviously astronomers and everyone else would be really unhappy if that happened, as indicated by the sudden drop far below the X axis on the graph, when the supernova gets too close. | ||
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+ | There is thus a spot where the astronomers would be the most happy, exactly there where the supernova is as close as it could be without any seriously negative effects on Earths atmosphere and the life living under it. But anything nearer than that is very bad. And only if the supernova is quite close (compared to cosmic distances) will it be visible to the naked eye, thus most of the graph shows an asymptotic approach to less and less positive influence on the mood of the astronomers. | ||
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+ | The title text expands upon the latter point of nearness, in that the astronomers them selves, are not quite clear about how close they would like the supernova to be. Of course if it is close enough to destroy Earth or instantly kill of all life on Earth, they would not be happy. But they might actually be willing to accept some trouble for Earth life, if they get to see a supernova really close by. (If they die too soon after the radiation arrives they cannot get time to observe it, and would thus not be happy about it. Also remember they do not know about the supernova before the radiation arrives, and can not plan to look in time if death comes swift from it!) But the chance to witness even a {{what if|73|lethally-close}} supernova might still be an attractive proposition for some inquisitive minds. But at least they should have time to realize they are seeing a supernova before it kills them, to become happy about it! | ||
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+ | This is the second comic in a row that mentions exploding stars after [[2877: Fever]], which like this comic is also a [[:Category:Charts|Charts comic]]. | ||
==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
− | :[A graph is shown where the | + | :[A graph is shown where the axis are labeled and arrow are pointing up above the Y axis label and to the right above the X axis label. There is a single line on the graph which peaks close to the Y axis, where it reaches close to the top of the drawn part of the Y axis. Then the lines approaches the X axis asymptotically towards the far right. But closer to the Y axis than the peak line goes almost vertically down, and continues far below the "bottom of the chart", that was only supposed to be above the X axis.] |
:Y axis: How happy astronomers are | :Y axis: How happy astronomers are | ||
:X axis: How far away the new supernova is | :X axis: How far away the new supernova is |