Modern telescopes can display dazzling images, but nothing beats the naked-eye view that astronomers enjoyed nearly a thousand years ago. In 1054, astronomers in China and Japan were amazed to see the birth of a new star so bright that it was even visible during daytime for 23 days and at night for almost two years! We now know that it was the supernova explosion of a massive star at the end of its life, and it formed the Crab Nebula (pictured in this Hubble Space Telescope image). Located at a distance of 6500 light years, the Crab Nebula is right in our galactic back garden. If the Einstein Telescope had already been up and running in 1054, we might even have detected the gravitational waves from that cosmic fireworks display!
Credit: NASA, ESA and Arizona State University |
