ESO/MPIfR: Observations Unravel Mystery of Nova Vul 1670

[bystander]

Colliding Stars Explain Enigmatic Seventeenth Century Explosion
Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy | 2015 Mar 23

APEX and Effelsberg Observations Unravel Mystery of Nova Vulpeculae 1670

[i]This picture shows the remains of the new star that was seen in the year 1670. It was created from a combination of visible-light images from the Gemini telescope (blue), a submillimetre map showing the dust from the SMA (green) and finally a map of the molecular emission from APEX and the SMA (red). [b]Credit: ESO/T. Kamiński[/b][/i]

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Discoveries made with the APEX telescope reveal that the “new” star that European astronomers saw appear in the sky in 1670 was not a nova, but a much rarer, violent breed of stellar collision. It was spectacular enough to be easily seen with the naked eye during its first outburst, but the traces it left were so faint that very careful analysis using modern submillimetre telescopes was needed to finally unravel the mystery more than 340 years later.

A team led by scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy in Bonn found emission from a fascinating variety of molecules that provides the tell-tale evidence. ...

Some of the age’s greatest astronomers, including Hevelius — the father of lunar cartography — and Cassini, carefully documented the appearance of a new star in the skies in 1670. Hevelius described it as “Nova sub capite Cygni” - a new star below the head of the Swan - but astronomers now know it by the name Nova Vul 1670. This object lies within the boundaries of the modern constellation of Vulpecula (The Fox), just across the border from Cygnus (The Swan) and is also referred to as CK Vulpeculae, its designation as a variable star. Historical accounts of novae are rare and of great interest to modern astronomers. ...

When it first appeared, Nova Vul 1670 was easily visible with the naked eye and varied in brightness significantly over the course of two years. It then disappeared and reappeared twice before vanishing for good. Although well documented for its time, the intrepid astronomers of the day lacked the equipment needed to solve the riddle of the apparent nova’s peculiar performance. ...

Colliding Stars Explain Enigmatic Seventeenth Century Explosion
ESO Science Release | APEX | 2015 Mar 23

Nuclear ashes and outflow in the eruptive star Nova Vul 1670 - Tomasz Kamiński et al

• Nature (online 23 Mar 2015) DOI: 10.1038/nature14257
  arXiv.org > astro-ph > arXiv:1503.06570 > 23 Mar 2015