This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image features the barred spiral galaxy IC 758.
ESA/Hubble & NASA, C. Kilpatrick
This serene spiral galaxy hides a cataclysmic past. The galaxy IC 758, shown in this NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image, is situated 60 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major.
Hubble captured this image in 2023. IC 758 appears peaceful, with its soft blue spiral arms curving gently around its hazy barred center. However, in 1999, astronomers spotted a powerful explosion in this galaxy. The supernova SN 1999bg marked the dramatic end of a star far more massive than the Sun.
Researchers do not know exactly how massive this star was before it exploded, but will use these Hubble observations to measure the masses of stars in SN 1999bg’s neighborhood. These measurements will help them estimate the mass of the star that went supernova. The Hubble data may also reveal whether SN 1999bg’s progenitor star had a companion, which would provide additional clues about the star’s life and death.
A supernova represents more than just the demise of a single star — it’s also a powerful force that can shape its neighborhood. When a massive star collapses, triggering a supernova, its outer layers rebound off its shrunken core. The explosion stirs the interstellar soup of gas and dust out of which new stars form. This interstellar shakeup can scatter and heat nearby gas clouds, preventing new stars from forming, or it can compress them, creating a burst of new star formation. The cast-off layers enrich the interstellar medium, from which new stars form, with heavy elements manufactured in the core of the supernova.
Text Credit: ESA/Hubble
Image Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, C. Kilpatrick
这张由美国国家航空航天局（NASA）与欧洲空间局（ESA）联合发布的哈勃太空望远镜图像，展示了棒旋星系IC 758。
ESA/Hubble & NASA, C. Kilpatrick
这个宁静的螺旋星系背后隐藏着一段剧烈的过往。这张由美国国家航空航天局（NASA）与欧洲空间局（ESA）联合发布的哈勃太空望远镜图像，展示了位于大熊座的IC 758，其距离地球约6000万光年。
哈勃望远镜于2023年拍摄了这张图像。画面中的星系显得祥和，淡蓝色的螺旋臂柔和地缠绕着朦胧的棒状中心。然而，在1999年，天文学家在该星系中发现了一场剧烈的爆炸——超新星SN 1999bg，这标志着一颗比太阳质量更大的恒星走到了生命的终点。
研究人员尚不清楚这颗恒星在爆炸前的确切质量，但他们计划利用哈勃观测数据，测量SN 1999bg周围恒星的质量，以此推断这颗爆炸恒星的原始质量。这些数据还可能揭示SN 1999bg的前身恒星是否拥有伴星，从而进一步揭示其演化历程。
超新星不仅象征着一颗恒星的终结，它本身也是一种改变宇宙局部结构的强大力量。当一颗大质量恒星发生塌缩并引发超新星爆发时，其外层物质会从收缩的核心反弹出去，猛烈地搅动星际空间中的气体与尘埃。这一过程可能使附近的气体云升温并四散，从而抑制新恒星的形成；也可能压缩气体云，触发一轮新的恒星诞生热潮。恒星抛射出的物质富含在其核心生成的重元素，这些元素最终将融入星际介质，成为新一代恒星的组成材料。
文字来源: ESA/Hubble
图像来源: ESA/Hubble & NASA, C. Kilpatrick
