Nathan Gray, 10, from Nova Scotia, Canada became the youngest person to date that has discovered a supernova. The celestial object he found is located around 600 million light-years away and scientists are already doing follow-up observations to confirm the supernova’s authenticity.
Nathan has been looking for a supernova for six months. "I was feeling kind of excited inside, really excited and kind of happy that I found one and knowing that I'm able to maybe find another one sometime," he told CBCNews.
Nathan made the rare discovery while going through the astronomical images taken by Dave Lane. The latter currently runs the Abbey Ridge Observatory headquartered in Nova Scotia. If the discovery proves to be real, Nathan may dethrone his older sister, Kathryn Aurora Gray, as the youngest supernova founder by a difference of 33 days.
Kathryn Aurora Gray earned worldwide attention after discovering a supernova which had been labeled as UGC 3378. Eventually, it led her to meet astronauts such as Neil Armstrong, Bill Anders, Victor Gorbakto, and Jim Lovell.
Supernova had been described as immense explosions that are linked to a certain star’s evolutionary end-state. Since they are so energetic, these explosions can be viewed in distant galaxies. By gazing into space, humans are able to peer back in time. While the speed of light is remarkably finite at 300000 km/s, the light-rays are said to travel by ‘astronomical’ distances.
Details of Nathan’s discovery can be found on the International Astronomical Union’s official site with its presence being confirmed by observers based in the US and Italy. It was provisioned with the name of PSNJ18032459+7013306. A large telescope must be used to confirm its unique light signature before it’s given an official supernova designation.
Astronomers are interested about supernovas because they manufacture the chemical elements that have led to the creation of the earth and other planets. Moreover, distant supernovas can help them calculate the universe’ size and age.
The last recorded supernova known to have occurred in our galaxy took place several hundred years ago, just before the telescope was invented.
