Starship Asterisk*

kovil wrote:I'm not positive, but if supernovae are named like hurricanes, then SN2009js would mean: as j is #10 in the alphabet, and s is #19; then SN2009js is the 9x26+19 th supernova this year ? the 253rd.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernova#Naming_convention wrote:
Supernova discoveries are reported to the International Astronomical Union's Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams, which sends out a circular with the name it assigns to it. The name is formed by the year of discovery, immediately followed by a one or two-letter designation. The first 26 supernovae of the year get designated with an upper case letter from A to Z. Afterward, pairs of lower-case letters are used, starting with aa, ab, and so on. Professional and amateur astronomers find several hundreds of supernovae each year (367 in 2005, 551 in 2006 and 572 in 2007). For example, the last supernova of 2005 was SN 2005nc, indicating that it was the 367th supernova found in 2005.

Historical supernovae are known simply by the year they occurred: SN 185, SN 1006, SN 1054, SN 1572 (Tycho's Nova) and SN 1604 (Kepler's Star). Since 1885, the letter notation was used, even if there was only one supernova discovered that year (e.g. SN 1885A, 1907A, etc.)—this last happened with SN 1947A. The standard abbreviation "SN" is an optional prefix.

kovil wrote:I'm not positive, but if supernovae are named like hurricanes, then SN2009js would mean: as j is #10 in the alphabet, and s is #19; then SN2009js is the 9x26+19 th supernova this year ? the 253rd.

neufer wrote:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernova#Naming_convention wrote: Professional and amateur astronomers find several hundreds of supernovae each year (367 in 2005, 551 in 2006 and 572 in 2007). For example, the last supernova of 2005 was SN 2005nc, indicating that it was the 367th supernova found in 2005.

orin stepanek wrote:

neufer wrote:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernova#Naming_convention wrote: Professional and amateur astronomers find several hundreds of supernovae each year (367 in 2005, 551 in 2006 and 572 in 2007). For example, the last supernova of 2005 was SN 2005nc, indicating that it was the 367th supernova found in 2005.

That's pretty good considering there are so many galaxies and stars out there to look for them. 8)
That's 1 to 2 per year.

bystander wrote:

kovil wrote:I'm not positive, but if supernovae are named like hurricanes, then SN2009js would mean: as j is #10 in the alphabet, and s is #19; then SN2009js is the 9x26+19 th supernova this year ? the 253rd.

j=10: 26*10 + 19 = 279

Axel wrote:The image is indeed beautiful with its wispy clouds and the elegant NGC 981. But gawd! I'm tired of that downer metaphor "death explosion" or "death star". Those explosions are spilling out the stuff of life - oxygen, carbon, iron - which gave birth to us and who knows what other life-forms. A supernova is like a milkweed pod bursting in the meadow:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarch_(butterfly) wrote:
<<The Monarch (Danaus plexippus) is a milkweed butterfly (subfamily Danainae), in the family Nymphalidae. Monarch butterflies are one of the few insects capable of making transatlantic crossings. They are becoming more common in Bermuda due to increased usage of milkweed as an ornamental plant in flower gardens.>>

Indigo_Sunrise wrote:Apologies for being late to the discussion, but where does the number '26' come from??? I understand the 10, with 'J' being the tenth letter, and 'S' is the nineteenth, of course, but I cannot figure out where the 26 is coming from..?

neufer wrote:

Wikipedia: Supernova: Naming Convention wrote:
Supernova discoveries are reported to the International Astronomical Union's Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams, which sends out a circular with the name it assigns to it. The name is formed by the year of discovery, immediately followed by a one or two-letter designation. The first 26 supernovae of the year get designated with an upper case letter from A to Z. Afterward, pairs of lower-case letters are used, starting with aa, ab, and so on. Professional and amateur astronomers find several hundreds of supernovae each year (367 in 2005, 551 in 2006 and 572 in 2007). For example, the last supernova of 2005 was SN 2005nc, indicating that it was the 367th supernova found in 2005.

Storm_norm wrote:Why choose two lines at 90 degrees to point out the region where the event was happening and not an arrow?

Freefall74 wrote:Is this NGC 981 or 918???

Freefall74 wrote:Is this NGC 981 or 918???

Far away in the constellation of Aries, in a 14th magnitude barred spiral galaxy designated as NGC 918… a star exploded with enough candlepower to briefly outshine its home. Discovered independently by Lick Observatory Supernova Search (LOSS) and Koichi Itagaki (Japan) on October 11, 2009, this Type II supernova might be hiding in the intergalactic dust, but it isn't hiding from Joe Brimacombe.

bystander wrote:NGC 981 is in Cetus not Aires, where NGC 918 is.

Johnny Rico wrote:I'm from Buenos Aires, and I say kill 'em all!

apodman wrote:

bystander wrote:NGC 981 is in Cetus not Aires, where NGC 918 is.

Johnny Rico wrote:I'm from Buenos Aires, and I say kill 'em all!

TheBigHenry wrote:Is it NGC 981 or NGC 918 (as the linked-to sites refer to it)?

bystander wrote:

TheBigHenry wrote:Is it NGC 981 or NGC 918 (as the linked-to sites refer to it)?

I'm fairly certain it is NGC 918, even the APOD link galaxy NGC 981 links to the NED entry for NGC 918. And the Sky Factory Deep Sky Catalogue picture for NGC 918 (rotated cw 90) certainly looks more like the APOD than NGC 981.

bystander wrote:

Indigo_Sunrise wrote:Apologies for being late to the discussion, but where does the number '26' come from??? I understand the 10, with 'J' being the tenth letter, and 'S' is the nineteenth, of course, but I cannot figure out where the 26 is coming from..?

26 letters in the alphabet

neufer wrote:

Wikipedia: Supernova: Naming Convention wrote:
Supernova discoveries are reported to the International Astronomical Union's Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams, which sends out a circular with the name it assigns to it. The name is formed by the year of discovery, immediately followed by a one or two-letter designation. The first 26 supernovae of the year get designated with an upper case letter from A to Z. Afterward, pairs of lower-case letters are used, starting with aa, ab, and so on. Professional and amateur astronomers find several hundreds of supernovae each year (367 in 2005, 551 in 2006 and 572 in 2007). For example, the last supernova of 2005 was SN 2005nc, indicating that it was the 367th supernova found in 2005.