![]() Supernova 2023ixf as seen on 20 May 2023 05:58 UT | |
Type II-L supernova (single massive star) | |
Date | 19 May 2023 17:27 [1] |
---|---|
Constellation | Ursa Major |
Right ascension | 14h 03m 38.6s [2] |
Declination | +54° 18′ 42.1″ [2] |
Epoch | J2000 |
Distance | 21 Mly (6.4 Mpc) [2] |
Host |
Pinwheel Galaxy (M101) NGC 5461 [3] |
Progenitor | Supergiant ( M=–4.66) [4] |
Peak apparent magnitude | 10.8 (on 22 May 2023) [5] [6] |
![]() | |
SN 2023ixf is a type II-L [7] [8] (core collapse) supernova located in the Pinwheel Galaxy (M101). It was first observed on 19 May 2023 by Kōichi Itagaki and immediately classified as a type II supernova. [2] Initial magnitude at discovery was 14.9. [2] After discovery, the Zwicky Transient Facility project found a precovery image of the supernova at magnitude 15.87 two days before discovery. [9] The supernova is about 21 million light-years from Earth and is expected to have left behind either a neutron star or black hole, based on current stellar evolution models.
The supernova is located near a prominent HII region, NGC 5461, in an outer spiral arm of the bright galaxy. [3]
By 22 May 2023 SN 2023ixf had brightened to about magnitude 11. [5] [6] It could be seen in telescopes as small as 114 mm (4.5 in) [3] and remained visible with backyard telescopes for several months. [10] The supernova started to fade around 10 June 2023. [11]
The last supernova that close to Earth occurred 9 years previously: SN 2014J in Messier 82, roughly 12 million light-years from Earth.
Supernova | Galaxy | Distance | Type | Peak apmag |
---|---|---|---|---|
SN 2023ixf | Pinwheel Galaxy (M101) | 21 Mly (6.4 Mpc) | II | 10.8 |
SN 2014J | M82 (Cigar Galaxy) | 12 Mly (3.7 Mpc) | Ia | 10.1 [12] |
SN 2011fe | Pinwheel Galaxy (M101) | 21 Mly (6.4 Mpc) | Ia | 9.9 [13] |
Before becoming a supernova, the progenitor star is believed to have been a supergiant with an absolute magnitude in the near-infrared (814nm) of MF814W = –4.66. [4]
![]() Supernova 2023ixf as seen on 20 May 2023 05:58 UT | |
Type II-L supernova (single massive star) | |
Date | 19 May 2023 17:27 [1] |
---|---|
Constellation | Ursa Major |
Right ascension | 14h 03m 38.6s [2] |
Declination | +54° 18′ 42.1″ [2] |
Epoch | J2000 |
Distance | 21 Mly (6.4 Mpc) [2] |
Host |
Pinwheel Galaxy (M101) NGC 5461 [3] |
Progenitor | Supergiant ( M=–4.66) [4] |
Peak apparent magnitude | 10.8 (on 22 May 2023) [5] [6] |
![]() | |
SN 2023ixf is a type II-L [7] [8] (core collapse) supernova located in the Pinwheel Galaxy (M101). It was first observed on 19 May 2023 by Kōichi Itagaki and immediately classified as a type II supernova. [2] Initial magnitude at discovery was 14.9. [2] After discovery, the Zwicky Transient Facility project found a precovery image of the supernova at magnitude 15.87 two days before discovery. [9] The supernova is about 21 million light-years from Earth and is expected to have left behind either a neutron star or black hole, based on current stellar evolution models.
The supernova is located near a prominent HII region, NGC 5461, in an outer spiral arm of the bright galaxy. [3]
By 22 May 2023 SN 2023ixf had brightened to about magnitude 11. [5] [6] It could be seen in telescopes as small as 114 mm (4.5 in) [3] and remained visible with backyard telescopes for several months. [10] The supernova started to fade around 10 June 2023. [11]
The last supernova that close to Earth occurred 9 years previously: SN 2014J in Messier 82, roughly 12 million light-years from Earth.
Supernova | Galaxy | Distance | Type | Peak apmag |
---|---|---|---|---|
SN 2023ixf | Pinwheel Galaxy (M101) | 21 Mly (6.4 Mpc) | II | 10.8 |
SN 2014J | M82 (Cigar Galaxy) | 12 Mly (3.7 Mpc) | Ia | 10.1 [12] |
SN 2011fe | Pinwheel Galaxy (M101) | 21 Mly (6.4 Mpc) | Ia | 9.9 [13] |
Before becoming a supernova, the progenitor star is believed to have been a supergiant with an absolute magnitude in the near-infrared (814nm) of MF814W = –4.66. [4]