Most recent visible-to-the-naked eye supernova
OCT 09, 2015
DOI: 10.1063/PT.5.031068
On this day in 1604 a new star, or nova, was noticed for the first time in the constellation Ophiuchus (the serpent bearer). Johannes Kepler began systematically observing the object, which he concluded was not a comet. (The letter N by the serpent bearer’s right ankle is Kepler’s indication of the nova’s position.) The nova turned out to be a supernova, the most recent to be unequivocally observed by the naked human eye in our galaxy. Astronomers continue to study the supernova remnant.
Date in History: 9 October 1604
© 2015 American Institute of Physics
