BA: AstroAlert: Type Ia supernova in M101! (SN 2011fe)

[Ann]

Here is one of the latest images of Supernova 2011fe, from virtualtelescope.bellatrixobservatory.org:



Ann

[Ann]

Couldn't help checking out the supernova again, and guess what. Its magnitude has been updated again, only about 15 hours since last time, at Mon, 05 Sep 2011 15:44:24 GMT. And it is holding steady. Its magnitude is still 10.5.

What will it be tomorrow?

Ann

[Ann]

On Mon, 05 Sep 2011 23:07:19 GMT, SN 2011fe is still 10.5.

Ann

[Ann]

And now, on Tue, 06 Sep 2011 02:23:22 GMT, SN 2011fe is still 10.5. doesn't it ever change? Or maybe http://www.rochesterastronomy.org/supernova.html doesn't have any new observations to report?

Ann

[Ann]

For lack of anything more interesting to post about SN 2011fe, I'll post this interview that I found at http://www.ufppc.org/us-a-world-news-ma ... ept-8.html

A STELLAR EXPLOSION IN THE BIG DIPPER's HANDLE
By Scott Simon

NPR
September 3, 2011

http://www.npr.org/2011/09/03/140163733 ... ers-handle

SCOTT SIMON, host: The Big Dipper has a shiny new sequin on its handle, it's a supernova, the magnificent last hurrah of a star. This weekend is a rare opportunity for amateurs to see a supernova from Earth. People all over the country will be able to catch a glimpse of the fireball from their backyards, as it reaches peak brightness over the next few nights.

Peter Nugent is an astronomer at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California, joins us from a studio there.

Dr. Nugent, thanks for being with us.

Dr. PETER NUGENT: Thank you very much for having me, Scott.

SIMON: How often does this happen?

NUGENT: So, in a galaxy like the Milky Way, about once every 100 years we can expect one of these supernova.

SIMON: How bright is it going to be?

NUGENT: So this supernova will reach what we in astronomy call Tenth Magnitude, and that's about a hundred times fainter than a human eye can see unaided in the dark sky, but easily reachable with a very small telescope.

SIMON: And, if we have such a telescope, how do we find it?

NUGENT: So the easiest way to find it is to look for the Big Dipper, head to the last two stars on the handle of the Big Dipper, and make an equilateral triangle out of those two stars -- with a point heading north. And the host galaxy for the supernova, the Pinwheel Galaxy, is located right at the other end of that triangle.

SIMON: So we can't miss it?

NUGENT: Well, it's probably best to get a star map out just to make sure you're in the neighborhood. But the Pinwheel Galaxy is pretty easy to see. It's about three-quarters the size of the full Moon, and it'll look like a nice fuzzy patch in a small six-inch telescope.

SIMON: And how far away is it from us?

NUGENT: Our best measurement to date places it at about 21 million light-years away.

SIMON: Is it true that the light were going to be seen is from a star that has already burned out?

NUGENT: Already dead and gone. If we were sitting in the Pinwheel Galaxy now, there would be nothing left of this supernova. Everything would -- that came from the explosion spread out everywhere.

SIMON: There's something very poignant about that.

NUGENT: Yeah, that were actually looking at something that's already dead and gone and vanished. But we get to watch it 21 million light-years away and 21 million years later.

SIMON: And how long will this light show last?

NUGENT: That's the incredible part. This supernova will reach peak brightness next Thursday, September 8th. And will be visible in small telescopes for the next year. And then by then, you'll start to need about a one meter telescope -- professional class telescope -- to follow it up. But then even the Hubble space telescope will still be able to view it for two to three more years after that. So this is one that's going to be studied for many, many years.

SIMON: Dr. Nugent, thanks so much.

NUGENT: Thank you very much for having me.

SIMON: Peter Nugent, an astronomer at Lawrence Berkeley National Labs, speaking to us from Berkeley.

This is NPR News.

Ann

[neufer]

For lack of anything more interesting to post about SN 2011fe, I'll post this interview:

SIMON: How bright is it going to be?

NUGENT: So this supernova will reach what we in astronomy call Tenth Magnitude, and that's about a hundred times fainter than a human eye can see unaided in the dark sky, but easily reachable with a very small telescope.

SIMON: And how far away is it from us?

NUGENT: Our best measurement to date places it at about 21 million light-years away.

SN 2011fe = Type Ia supernova peaking at about magnitude +10.2

The typical visual absolute magnitude of Type Ia supernovae is Mv = −19.3

(32.616 lyr) x 10^{[10.2- (−19.3)]/5} ~ 26 million light-years away

[Ann]

It could be that SN 2011fe is going to peak at about magnitude 10.2, like you said, Art. http://www.rochesterastronomy.org/supernova.html, updated on Wed, 07 Sep 2011 00:41:08 GMT, puts the supernova at mag 10.3.

Ann

[Ann]

The latest update from http://www.rochesterastronomy.org/supernova.html, on Thu, 08 Sep 2011 02:59:02 GMT, says that SN 2011fe is at magnitude 10.0.

I think the lightcurve of this supernova, as described by http://www.rochesterastronomy.org/supernova.html, must look weird. The supernova held at 10.5 for at least 36 hours, then it rose to 10.3 and after less than 24 hours it had brightened to 10.0.

I guess the updates haven't been quite reliable.

Ann

[Ann]

The latest update from http://www.rochesterastronomy.org/supernova.html, on Fri, 09 Sep 2011 00:58:46 GMT, says that the supernova is still at magnitude 10.0. after its jump from 10.3 to 10.0 on the day before.

Ann

[Ann]

The supernova has risen to magnitude 9.9. It was most recently updated on Sat, 10 Sep 2011 14:13:41 GMT.

Ann

[Beyond]

What a blast from the past. Those photons make good visual time capsules. And they just keep on coming.

[neufer]

The supernova has risen to magnitude 9.9. It was most recently updated on Sat, 10 Sep 2011 14:13:41 GMT.

SN 2011fe = Type Ia supernova peaking at about magnitude +9.9

The typical visual absolute magnitude of Type Ia supernovae is Mv = −19.3

(32.616 lyr) x 10^{[9.9- (−19.3)]/5} ~ 22.6 million light-years away[/quote]

[Beyond]

Eh, so it's a little off from typical. What isn't

[Ann]

On Sat, 10 Sep 2011 22:36:18 GMT, the supernova was still 9.9.

I expected the supernova to turn out to be faint, but I haven't gotten the impression that it is.

Ann

[Beyond]

Ann, if you expended as much energy as that super nova, you might feel just a tad faint. Of course if you did.... the solar system wouldn't be here , so you wouldn't have to worry about being faint, and some alien might call it -The Ann Nebula-.

[Ann]

The Ann Nebula - I hope not!!!

As for SN 2011fe, it still holds at 9.9, according to the latest update on Sun, 11 Sep 2011 23:04:12 GMT, at http://www.rochesterastronomy.org/supernova.html.

But sometimes I get the impression that they aren't updating as frequently as they say they are doing, or at least, not all of their updates seem to pertain to SN 2011fe.

Click to view full size image

This appears to be one of the latest images of SN 2011fe. It looks pretty bright here.


As you can see, the image is by Rafael Ferrando.








Ann

[neufer]

Eh, so it's a little off from typical. What isn't

My calculation does not take into account interstellar absorption (and it may still get brighter than +9.9)
so the 22.6 million light years is really an upper limit and everything is tickety-boo.

[Beyond]

tickety-boo Danny Kaye science terminology. Yeah, it's good.

[Ann]

http://www.rochesterastronomy.org/supernova.html says that SN 2011fe is still magnitude 9.9 on Tue, 13 Sep 2011 02:20:24 GMT.

I don't know. I think somebody ought to help them update this supernova a bit more often.

Thanks for reminding us of the tickey-boo thing, Art. Sometimes you just need an overdose of sunny cheerfulness!

Sunny Danny, or Cheerful Sun before supernova!



Ann

[Ann]

Couldn't help showing you this, from a Swedish newspaper, Svenska Dagbladet. The married couple, Jan and Maria Berglin, produce absolutely delightful cartoons together, or at least I think so.

In the cartoon, the husband is saying to his wife:

"You're supposed to be able to see a supernova in the constellation Ursa Major now... it exploded 21 million years ago, and only now do we get to see it! Isn't it fantastic?"

The wife replies:

"Hm.. 21 million years... does it really have to take so long?"

This is the first time ever that I have uploaded an image to something I've posted. Thanks a million to alter-ego, whose help was invaluable to me.

Ann

[Ann]

On Tue, 13 Sep 2011 22:25:25 GMT, SN 2011 was still at 9.9... I wonder when it was really updated.

I found this light curve of SN 2011fe from AAVSO.org. It appears to show data collected until September 9 or 10.

I found the graph at this page, if it helps.





Ann

[Ann]

On Thu, 15 Sep 2011 01:22:05 GMT, the supernova was still magnitude 9.9.

Getting a bit boring, isn't it?












Ann

[Beyond]

Aw-w-w-w-w. Theres that nice puddy-tat again.

[Ann]

Yeah, he's prettier than the supernova, isn't he?

By the way, I found a lot of information about SN 2011fe on this page from astrosurf.com. You can take a look at several spectra of SN 2011fe, among other things. The supernova sure seems to contain a lot of silicon, judging from the spectral lines.

So if you want to fill a body part of yours with silicon, then maybe a 21-million light-year trip to the supernova in the Pinwheel Galaxy would be a good idea?)

Ann

[neufer]

tickety-boo Danny Kaye science terminology. Yeah, it's good.

It is my fervent wish that owlice watch the Danny Kaye video
and be incapable of ever bicycling again
without the tickety-boo song running thru her head.