Ten-year-old becomes youngest person to discover a supernova
JAN 05, 2011
DOI: 10.1063/PT.5.024946
Globe and Mail : Ten-year-old Canadian Kathryn Gray is the youngest person ever to have discovered a supernova, according to the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. Kathryn’s father, Paul Gray, and amateur astronomer Dave Lane have searched together for supernovas since 1995. Kathryn and her father were examining images taken 31 December by a telescope in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and noticed a tiny white spot just above a faraway galaxy. After ruling out the possibility that it was an asteroid or comet, and checking that it had not already been previously identified, they had the finding confirmed by two other amateur astronomers. Kathryn said she was really excited when they confirmed the discovery, writes Robert Matas for Toronto’s Globe and Mail.
© 2011 American Institute of Physics
