August 18, 2017

The supernova SN 2017cbv and the galaxy NGC 5643 (Image courtesy B.J. Fulton)

An article published in “Astrophysical Journal Letters” describes the observation of the collision of the supernova SN 2017cbv with a companion. A team of astronomers observed for the first time the details of this type of cosmic event that happened in the NGC 5643 galaxy and was spotted on Earth on March 10, 2017. This is due to the possibility of observing it for five days with the Las Cumbres Observatory (LCO) obtaining data suggesting that the companion was a normal star with a radius about 20 times the Sun’s.