On the weekend of September 3-4, 2011 – if you live in the northern hemisphere – you’ll have an opportunity to witness what the ancients might have thought was a “new” star – a star that pops into view suddenly where no star was before. We today know it as an exploding star, or supernova. You will probably need binoculars to see the supernova … but still. It’ll be cool.
Astronomers believe it may become the brightest Type 1a supernova of the last 30 years. And you can see it with an ordinary pair of binoculars.
1. Which way do I look? The supernova is located near the familiar Big Dipper pattern in our skies. At this time of year, the Big Dipper can be found in the northwest in the hours after sunset.
2. What time of night? Don’t wait too late at night, or the Big Dipper will have set below your northwestern horizon.
Visit EarthSky.org for the full story and how to find it
Now if you can’t watch the video make sure to visit the link for instructions on how to find it.
Sky Watching 1a shows how to find Polaris may be helpful in this pursuit
I'm thinking this would be amazing to see in an area free of light pollution. Thanks for sharing!
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