Using Supernovae to Measure Distances
Supernovae are some of the brightest objects in the sky, characterized as the explosions of massive stars. Interestingly enough, supernovae shine as brightly as billions of stars put together, emitting as much light as the` galaxy of its residence. It is likely to find supernovae on a given night. They have been observed and recorded for many hundreds of years. The last reported supernova in the Milky Way was in 1572, and it was visible by the naked eye.
A supernova finalizes the life cycle of a star- a star that is heavier than the Sun. The supernova is dependent on the mass of the star. Nuclear forces cause the collapse of the lighter stars, where as heavier stars ignite because of such strong gravitational attractions present at their core. Therefore, there are two types of supernova.
Supernovae Ia have very distinctive features, making them very identifiable. Supernovae Ia correspond to light stars and Supernovae Ib, correspond to heavier stars. When the supernovae Ia detonates, its spectra is easily identifiable because hydrogen is absent, allowing them to be distinguishable compared to other types of supernovae.
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