Credit: NASA, ESA, and O. Fox (University of California, Berkeley), A. Bostroem (STScI), S. Van Dyk (Caltech), A. Filippenko (University of California, Berkeley), C. Fransson (Stockholm University), T. Matheson (NOAO), S. Cenko (University of California, Berkeley, and NASA/GSFC), P. Chandra (National Center for Radio Astrophysics/Pune University, India), V. Dwarkadas (University of Chicago), W. Li and A. Parker (University of California, Berkeley), and N. Smith (Steward Observatory)

This image shows the supernova 1993J which is situated inside the majestic spiral galaxy M81. It can be seen in situ in the annotated image. Though astronomers saw the star explode as a supernova 21 years ago, the glow of that explosion is still present, as seen here. The supernova has faded to the point where astronomers are confident that they have picked up the ultraviolet glow of a very hot companion star. This is the first time astronomers have been able to put constraints on the properties of the companion star in this unusual class of supernova called Type IIb. Hubble observations in ultraviolet light confirm the theory that the explosion originated in a double-star system where one star fueled the mass-loss from the aging primary star. Links: NASA Press release Artist's impression of supernova 1993J Spiral galaxy M81 Supernova 1993J in spiral galaxy M81 Scenario for Type IIb supernova 1993J

Provider: Hubble Space Telescope | ESA

Image Source: https://www.spacetelescope.org/images/opo1438d/

Curator: ESA/Hubble, Garching bei München, Germany

Image Use Policy: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License