Novel supernova observations grant astronomers a peek into the cosmic past
An international team of researchers has made new observations of an unusual supernova, finding the most metal-poor stellar explosion ever observed.
This rare supernova, called 2023ufx, originated from the core collapse of a red supergiant star, exploded on the outskirts of a nearby dwarf galaxy. Results of the study showed that observations of both this supernova and the galaxy it was discovered in are of low metallicity, meaning they lack an abundance of elements heavier than hydrogen or helium.
Since the metals produced within supernovae inform their properties, including how stars evolve and die, learning more about their formation can tell astronomers much about the state of the universe when it began, especially since there were essentially no metals around during the time of its birth, said Michael Tucker, lead author of the study and a fellow at the Center for Cosmology and AstroParticle Physics at The Ohio State University.
“If you’re someone who wants to predict how the Milky Way came to be, you want to have a good idea of how the first exploding stars seeded the next generation,” said Tucker. “Understanding that gives scientists a great example of how those first objects affected their surroundings.”