The different types of supernovae
Not all supernovae are created equal. Here is a brief description of the four main categories of exploding stars.
Published:
May 29, 2012
Supernovae are stars that suddenly increase drastically in brightness (billions of times more luminous than the Sun), outshining their own galaxies. They reach this brightness in just a few hours and take from weeks to months to fade.
Scientists classify different types of supernovae by their emitted light signatures (called spectra); these show what elements the original star created and thus released into space after it exploded.
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