1006 AD: Supernova in the Sky
影像版權與提供: Tunc Tezel
Explanation:
A new star, likely the brightest supernova in recorded human history, appeared in planet Earth's sky about 1,000 years ago today, in 1006 AD. The expanding debris cloud from the stellar explosion is still visible to modern astronomers, but what did the supernova look like in 1006? In celebration of the millennial anniversary of SN1006, astronomer Tunc Tezel offers this intriguing suggestion, based on a photograph he took on February 22, 1998 from a site overlooking the Mediterranean south of Antalya, Turkey. On that date, bright Venus and a waning crescent Moon shone in the early morning sky. Adopting calculations which put the supernova's apparent brightness between Venus and the crescent Moon, he digitally superposed an appropriate new star in the picture. He placed the star at the supernova's position in the southerly constellation of Lupus and used the water's reflection of moonlight in the final image.
說明:
西元1006年，人類的史書記載了一顆可能歷史上最亮的超新星。直到今日，天文學家仍然能看到這顆超新星爆炸所產生的擴張碎片雲氣，不過西元1006年超新星看起來會是如何？為慶祝SN1006的千年慶，天文學家Tunc Tezel根據他1998年2月22日，在土耳其安達耶爾市(Antalya)南部的觀測站往地中海所拍攝之照片，提供這個很有趣的推測；在那天的清晨，清晰的夜空中有明亮的金星以及弦月，根據計算這顆超新星的視亮度介於金星與弦月之間，因此他用數位影像合成的方法將一顆光度相當的新星植入此照片。他把這顆星放在南方的豺狼座(Lupus)內，最後再加上月光的水面倒影組成了這幅影像。
資料來源: Scientific American
Department of Physics, NCKU
