APOD: M95 with Supernova (2012 Mar 22)

APOD Robot · Post by **APOD Robot** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 4:06 am

M95 with Supernova

Explanation: Barred spiral galaxy M95 is about 75,000 light-years across, comparable in size to our own Milky Way and one of the larger galaxies of the Leo I galaxy group. In fact, it is part of a not quite so famous trio of Leo galaxies with neighbors M96 and M105, about 38 million light-years distant. In this sharp and colorful cosmic portrait, a bright, compact ring of star formation surrounds the galaxy's core. Surrounding the prominent yellowish bar are tightly wound spiral arms traced by dust lanes, young blue star clusters, and telltale pinkish star forming regions. As a bonus, follow along the spiral arm unwinding down and to the right and you'll soon get to M95's latest supernova SN 2012aw, discovered on March 16 and now identified as the explosion of a massive star. A good target for small telescopes, the supernova stands out in this video feature (vimeo) comparing the recent image with a deep image of M95 without supernova taken in 2009.

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owlice · Post by **owlice** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 4:08 am

Great image, great write-up, great links!
http://asterisk.apod.com/viewtopic.php?f=29&t=27925

neufer · Post by **neufer** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 4:13 am

http://asterisk.apod.com/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=27875

Ann · Post by **Ann** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 5:44 am

Oh, thanks, Adam, what a superb topical image!

Hmmm, the supernova progenitor was a massive star. So this is not a type Ia, then. Well, then there's no telling how bright this one will turn out to be. I note that the supernova appears to be interestingly blue. Type Ia supernovae are typically blue, but those that come from massive stars aren't always blue. The most famous recent supernova, SN 1987A, was notoriously yellow and rather faint, too. But it came from an exploding blue star!

Well, I's so glad to see this image! Thanks, Adam!

Ann

orin stepanek · Post by **orin stepanek** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 12:33 pm

Neat! I thought it was a foreground star at first!

Barred spiral galaxy M95 is about 75,000 light-years across,

According to wiki!The Milky Way is probably larger! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milky_Way

John G. E. · Post by **John G. E.** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 6:28 pm

Which trio is the Leo Trio? I guess any three galaxies makes a trio, but the previous APOD ( http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap060309.html ) that the caption of today's APOD links to shows a trio that does not include today's featured galaxy. It seems to be at the other end of the Leo galaxy group. In trying to make sense of this, I got to learn more about the Leo Group and see some beautiful galaxies, in addition to seeing a great supernova image.

bystander · Post by **bystander** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 7:47 pm

John G. E. wrote:Which trio is the Leo Trio? I guess any three galaxies makes a trio, but the previous APOD ( http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap060309.html ) that the caption of today's APOD links to shows a trio that does not include today's featured galaxy. It seems to be at the other end of the Leo galaxy group. In trying to make sense of this, I got to learn more about the Leo Group and see some beautiful galaxies, in addition to seeing a great supernova image.

M65, M66, and NGC 3628 are commonly known as the Leo Triplet. M95, M96, and M105, all part of the M96 Group (aka Leo I Group), also make an interesting trio, but they are not the Leo Triplet.

Anthony Barreiro · Post by **Anthony Barreiro** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 9:41 pm

<A good target for small telescopes ... >

According to the link in the caption, reported magnitudes for this supernova are well below 13th magnitude. You might be able to resolve a 13th magnitude star with a 10-inch telescope, but you would more likely need a 12- or 14-inch aperture. I wouldn't call that a small telescope. Is this supernova expected to brighten considerably?

Chris Peterson · Post by **Chris Peterson** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 10:46 pm

Anthony Barreiro wrote:<A good target for small telescopes ... >

According to the link in the caption, reported magnitudes for this supernova are well below 13th magnitude. You might be able to resolve a 13th magnitude star with a 10-inch telescope, but you would more likely need a 12- or 14-inch aperture. I wouldn't call that a small telescope. Is this supernova expected to brighten considerably?

Under reasonably dark skies, a 6" telescope will pick out a star in the 13-14 mag range. It's no strain at all with an 8" aperture. These days, with inexpensive Dobs, I'd call anything under 12" small under many circumstances.

Anthony Barreiro · Post by **Anthony Barreiro** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 11:59 pm

Chris, you have sharper eyes and/or darker skies than I do. And I would call anything up to 4 or 5 inches small, 6 to 10 inches mid-sized, and 12 inches and up a large amateur telescope.

neufer · Post by **neufer** » Sat Mar 24, 2012 2:39 am

: [b][color=#0000FF]A 90-minute exposure of M95 with 2012 aw marked taken through a 16-inch telescope. Credit: John Chumack[/color][/b]

http://astrobob.areavoices.com/2012/03/23/see-a-razor-sharp-moon-and-learn-how-we-solved-a-stellar-mystery/ wrote:
See a razor moon tonight plus how we solved a dark star mystery
Posted on March 23, 2012 by astrobob

<<First, an update on supernova 2012 aw in M95. A group of astronomers have gone back over older photos of the galaxy and identified the star before it went supernova as a red supergiant about 8 times more massive than the sun. This would make it one of the reddest and coolest of its class to become a supernova.

Or the star was shrouded in a dust cloud of its own making.

A third possibility is that it’s been heavily reddened by dust within the galaxy. I’ll go out on a limb and suggest this might explain why 2012 aw hasn’t continued to brighten beyond 13th magnitude.>>

Starship Asterisk*

APOD: M95 with Supernova (2012 Mar 22)

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