New Mysterious Supernova Discovered

abc.net.au:

Astronomers have discovered what they think is a new type of supernova, which could have implications for how the universe is measured.

Read the whole story: abc.net.au

Comments

[jimrs6]

Not very green. Spreading itself all over the galaxy.

[RTIII]

Yes, supernova type 1A are used as "standard candles" for measuring distance because they are assumed - presumed - to all have identical intrinsic brightness. If that's wrong, all our "knowledge" about distances are wrong, too.
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[SiriusMrE]

Exactly! Even Edwin Hubble himself warned against taking red-shift to mean velocity/distance.

[Pem3]

Neat it shows that we are learning some thing new the more we study what is out there.

[shockmagog]

Dazzling!

[freshmind]

As long as it isn't near us it's great, hope it didn't wipe out any nearby life that may have been blasted by it.

[SiriusMrE]

Yes, this is interesting. Like Star Trek or Babylon 5 are interesting: as science fiction.

What if the consensus opinion about novae and supernovae is completely wrong? This supernova is NOT "MYSTERIOUS," as the article's headline blares. The reality is that the observations do not fit the theory; that's what has them scratching their heads. Maybe it's not NGC1821 that's the problem, maybe the basic assumptions (developed during the gas-light era) that Dr. Poznanski and his colleagues bring to the observation of this object preclude them from seeing what is actually going on.

"Instead of mechanical action and imploding gas, [NGC1821] was created when an influx of electric current exceeded a critical value and was unable to maintain a stable connection with the galactic circuit. The break in the circuit caused the star to short-out and explode, just like an electric circuit here on Earth can suddenly explode when too much current flows through it."
http://thunderbolts.info/tpod/2009/arch09/090820double.htm

[NoMoFearNoMoHate]

Fictional science from a fictional character, big surprise.

Unless you're a fan of fictional science, do not visit the proffered link.

[JohnSawyer]

Some of the articles at thunderbolts.info do go over the line, but some of it is worth considering, such as their main contention that the electrical component of astronomical events is too often not looked into, as being both partial cause and effect in some of these events.

[PhilipB]

Very interesting!