Oldest Known Supernova From Year 185 Spotted By Scientists

A new image clicked by a camera designed to study dark matter has shown remains of an ancient supernova explosion in great detail. The picture was captured by the Dark Energy Camera on the National Science Foundation's (NSF) V¨ªctor M. Blanco Telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile and shows clouds of dust and gas spreading around the supernova's centre.

The cloud, known as object RCW 86, is believed to be leftover material from a star that exploded about 1,800-years-ago with so much intensity that it managed to garner the attention of ancient Chinese astronomers, Space.com reported.

NSF NOIRLab

A supernova from the ancient past

The ancient Chinese referred to it by the name "quest star" owing to its temporary nature. It is now known as SN 185, for it was first spotted in the year 185 AD, fading over eight months. Scientists now know that the supernova event happened 8,000 light-years away in the direction of Alpha Centauri, our Sun's closest sibling.

The Dark Energy Camera can see a large portion of the sky without compromising the level of detail. This time, it provided astronomers a "rare view of the entire supernova remnant as it seen today," said NSF NOIRLav in a statement on Wednesday.

Also read: Astronomers Find New Kind Of Supernova Formed By Black Hole Eating A Star From Inside

NASA

Scientists hope this fresh look at the supernova will help them get a better idea of the processes that caused it. Scientists today agree that RCW 86 is a remnant of the SN 185 supernova. But this wasn't always the case... Earlier, scientists thought that the shell's size was too big to have been created in the aftermath of that explosion.

According to Space.com, it would take at least 10,000 years for the material to spread farther than the dead star.

Also read: Astronomers Find New Kind Of Supernova Formed By Black Hole Eating A Star From Inside

NASA

Based on observations by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope that found large amounts of iron in the material, it seems that the explosion was the most energetic type of a supernova - the kind that occurs when a white dwarf star consumes an orbiting companion star. Such supernovas are known as Type Ia supernova and produce immense amount of light.

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