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In the coming months, the world is set to witness an extraordinary celestial event as a massive explosion in the T Coronae Borealis star system is poised to create a “new star” in the night sky. This rare astronomical event, expected to occur between now and September 2024, is not the birth of a star but rather an extraordinary nova outburst from T Coronae Borealis (T CrB), situated 3,000 light-years away in the constellation of Corona Borealis. NASA described the anticipated nova outburst as a “once-in-a-lifetime viewing opportunity” as T Coronae Borealis is predicted to become as bright as the...

Watch as Otzi, a 5000-year-old mummy, is brought to life and preserved with 3D modeling. (Aired February 17, 2016)He was stalked, attacked and left to die alone. Murdered more than 5,000 years ago, Otzi the Iceman is Europe's oldest known natural mummy. Miraculously preserved in glacial ice, his remarkably intact remains continue to provide scientists, historians, and archeologists with groundbreaking discoveries about a crucial time in human history. But in order to protect him from contamination, this extraordinary body has been locked away, out of reach, in a frozen crypt—until now. NOVA joins renowned artist and paleo-sculptor Gary Staab as...

The three-week-old Israel-Hamas war has sparked protests by some high school students in Fairfax County, Virginia. Students, with their principals’ permission, have been walking out of classes for brief rallies on school grounds. Scores of students at Mount Vernon High School crowded the school’s main plaza at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday and spent a half-hour chanting and rallying for the Palestinian people, especially the children. The students hoisted homemade signs and unfurled the Palestinian flag. There was a similar student protest earlier in the day at Edison High School. Other student rallies are expected Thursday at Woodson and Falls Church high...

Artist impression of a black hole accretion. Astronomers led by the University of Southampton have discovered the largest cosmic explosion ever observed, known as AT2021lwx. Over ten times brighter than any known supernova and three times brighter than the brightest tidal disruption event, the explosion has been ongoing for more than three years. Researchers believe the explosion is due to a massive gas cloud, possibly thousands of times larger than the sun, being violently disrupted by a supermassive black hole. Credit John A. Paice www.johnapaice.com Astronomers have discovered the largest cosmic explosion ever observed, AT2021lwx, which is believed to have...

A woman sits in the driver's seat of a classic car Cristin Elliott is seated back behind the wheel of her cherished 1971 Chevy Nova. She was recently reunited with the car after it was stolen in November 2010.Dave Killen / The Oregonian Thirteen years after someone stole her sleek black Chevy Nova SS with red vinyl seats, Cristin Elliott got the car back. With tears in her eyes, she sat behind the wheel for the first time since September 2010, when she’d parked it outside a friend’s house. The motor wouldn’t start when she turned the key. Someone had...

snr0519 While astronomers have seen the debris from scores of exploded stars in the Milky Way and nearby galaxies, it is often difficult to determine the timeline of the star’s demise. By studying the spectacular remains of a supernova in a neighboring galaxy using NASA telescopes, a team of astronomers has found enough clues to help wind back the clock. The supernova remnant called SNR 0519-69.0 (SNR 0519 for short) is the debris from an explosion of a white dwarf star. After reaching a critical mass, either by pulling matter from a companion star or merging with another white...

Police are investigating after a grotto at a Catholic parish in Burke, Virginia was vandalized Tuesday evening. Nativity Catholic Church, is vowing to raise money to replace the statues, which were damaged beyond repair Jan. 25. The parish’s grotto depicted Our Lady of Fatima speaking to the three child visionaries. In a Jan. 26 letter to his parish, Fr. Bob Cilinski said he was “so saddened” when the vandalism was discovered. “The police were notified and came out to document the vandalism and begin their investigation. Unfortunately, the statues damaged are not repairable,” said Cilinski. “The statues will be removed...

Hundreds of Afghan refugees are staying at a northern Virginia campus as they await relocation to a more permanent destination. After arriving at Dulles International Airport Friday night, refugees spent the night at Northern Virginia Community College in Annandale, news outlets report. A college spokesperson said the refugees will stay at the campus anywhere from a few hours to a few days. Many refugees are destined for Fort McCoy in Wisconsin, Fort Bliss in Texas and Fort Lee in Virginia. The Fairfax County Office of Emergency Management set up more than 500 cots in ballrooms and community rooms. As word...

(NASA/CXC/SAO/P.Slane, et al.) ====================================================================================== A ghostly "hand" reaching through the cosmos has just given us new insight into the violent deaths of massive stars. The spectacular structure is the ejecta from a core-collapse supernova, and, by taking images of it over a 14-year span, astronomers have been able to observe as it blasts into space at around 4,000 kilometers (2,485 miles) per second. At the very tips of the "fingers", the supernova remnant and blast wave - named MSH 15-52 - is punching into a cloud of gas called RCW 89, generating shocks and knots in the material, and...

Previously unseen video footage has been helping scientists learn more about the fate of the airship. One of the 20th Century's most infamous disasters, the destruction of the Hindenburg - a large German passenger airship - occurred following its arrival at Naval Air Station Lakehurst in Manchester Township, New Jersey in May 1937. The huge hydrogen-filled airship was carrying 97 passengers at the time, of which 37 lost their lives when the vessel inexplicably burst into flames and crashed to the ground, bringing with it any remaining confidence in airship travel in general. Although it is obvious that the gas...

Almost 35 years ago, scientists made the then-radical proposal that colossal hydrogen bombs called novae go through a very long-term life cycle after erupting, fading to obscurity for hundreds of thousands of years and then building back up to become full-fledged novae once more. A new study is the first to fully model the work and incorporate all of the feedback factors now known to control these systems, backing up the original prediction while bringing new details to light. Published this week in the journal Nature Astronomy, the study confirms that the novae we observe flashing throughout the universe represent...

According to reports in The Astronomer's Telegram, a star in the region of the constellation of Cassiopeia has just gone nova, and the glow is still visible in the night sky. If you live in the Northern Hemisphere and have even a basic telescope, you might want to head out and point it in that direction. The first detection was made on 18 March 2021 by amateur astronomer Yuji Nakamura from the Mie Prefecture in Japan. In four frames captured using a 135-millimeter lens and a 15-second exposure, a bright, magnitude 9.6 glow was visible where none had been just...

The nova (left) and the same patch of sky four days earlier. (Yuji Nakamura/NAOJ) According to reports in The Astronomer's Telegram, a star in the region of the constellation of Cassiopeia has just gone nova, and the glow is still visible in the night sky. If you live in the Northern Hemisphere and have even a basic telescope, you might want to head out and point it in that direction. The first detection was made on 18 March 2021 by amateur astronomer Yuji Nakamura from the Mie Prefecture in Japan. In four frames captured using a 135-millimeter lens and a...

An amateur astronomer just spotted a strange new object in the sky. And it’s bright enough for you to see with binoculars from your backyard. The discovery image (left) of a new nova that recently appeared in the constellation Cassiopeia. The right image shows how the same region of the sky appeared just four days prior. Yuji Nakamura At around 7 P.M. JST on the evening of March 18, Japanese amateur astronomer Yuji Nakamura spotted something strange: A new point of light in the familiar constellation Cassiopeia the Queen. Researchers at Kyoto University quickly followed up using the 3.8-meter Seimei...

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D) announced Tuesday that northern Virginia suburbs outside Washington, D.C., will begin the next phase of reopening as the spread of coronavirus appears to be slowing in the region. The new guidelines, which go into effect Friday, allow the opening of restaurants for indoor dining at half capacity and allow gyms and fitness centers to reopen indoors at 30 percent capacity. Social gatherings now have a maximum of 50 people, up from 10 people allowed under phase one. Religious gatherings can take place at 50 percent capacity. Wearing face masks, social distancing and working remotely are...

Northern Virginia, the state’s economic engine, is nowhere near ready to reopen Friday when Gov. Ralph Northam plans to begin lifting shutdown restrictions, the region’s top elected officials said Sunday, citing the continuing increase in coronavirus infections and hospitalizations. In a joint letter, the elected leaders in Northern Virginia’s five largest jurisdictions — representing nearly 2.4 million residents — told Northam (D) they are unwilling to lift restrictions in place since late March, which the governor plans to do in a limited capacity Friday in hopes of reviving the state’s ailing economy. Northam announced last week that he will begin...

A controlled burn occurring at Marine Corps Base Quantico Sunday afternoon near the Stafford and Fauquier county line is causing moderate to heavy smoke conditions in Prince William County and other areas of Northern Virginia, Maryland and D.C. The U.S. Forest Service is conducting the controlled burn of about 2,000 acres in the area. Individuals with respiratory illnesses or medical conditions that are aggravated by smoke should remain indoors until smoke conditions clear, according to the Prince William County Police Department. The controlled burn is expected to last two days. The controlled burn appears to have caught local jurisdictions off...

Supergiant star Betelgeuse has been getting dimmer at an unprecedented pace over the past few months, leading some astronomers to wonder if it might be in the process of the collapse that precedes a supernova explosion. But there are other possible explanations, and we should have a better idea of what's happening to the massive star by the end of the month. Betelgeuse has no more than about 100,000 years left to burn and could start its death throes just about anytime between now and then. When it does go supernova, it's expected to result in a dramatic light show...

Gravitational waves are caused by calamitous events in the Universe. Neutron stars that finally merge after circling each other for a long time can create them, and so can two black holes that collide with each other. But sometimes there's a burst of gravitational waves that doesn't have a clear cause. One such burst was detected by LIGO/VIRGO on January 14, and it came from the same region of sky that hosts the star Betelgeuse. Yeah, Betelgeuse, aka Alpha Orionis. The star that has been exhibiting some dimming behaviour recently, and is expected to go supernova at some point in...

Currently, the faint star V Sagittae, V Sge, in the constellation Sagitta, is barely visible, even in mid-sized telescopes. However, around the year 2083, this innocent star will explode, becoming as bright as Sirius, the brightest star visible in the night sky. During this time of eruption, V Sge will be the most luminous star in the Milky Way galaxy. This prediction is being presented for the first time at the 235th American Astronomical Society meeting in Honolulu, HI, by astronomers Bradley E. Schaefer, Juhan Frank, and Manos Chatzopoulos, with the Louisiana State University Department of Physics & Astronomy. V...