Exciting news for all of us! Amateur astronomer Victor Buso discovered a newly born, normal type IIb supernova (SN 2016gkg) when he was performing test on his new camera-ASI1600MM-C for lucky imaging. And this time was really really lucky!
His discovery, reported Wednesday in the journal Nature, is a landmark for astronomy. Buso’s images are the first to capture the brief “shock breakout” phase of a supernova, when a wave of energy rolls from a star’s core to its exterior just before the star explodes. Computer models had suggested the existence of this phase, but no one had witnessed it. (From Speaking of Science)
Astronomer Victor Buso poses in front of the telescope with which he witnessed the birth of the supernova 2016gkg.