supernova
noun
Did you know?
A nova, despite its name, isn't actually a "new" star, but rather one that wasn't noticed until it exploded, when it may increase in brightness by a million times before returning to its previous state a few days later. A supernova is far larger; a star in its supernova state may emit a billion times as much light as previously. After a few weeks it begins to dim, until it eventually ceases to exist; it's often replaced by a black hole. (Though remains that were shot out into space may survive; those of a great supernova seen in A.D. 1054 are now known as the Crab Nebula.) All this may serve as a warning to those human stars whose fame explodes too rapidly; supernovas of this kind have sometimes vanished by the following year.
Examples of supernova in a Sentence
Robert Lea, Space.com, 30 Nov. 2025
In the 1970s astronomers used a variation on this technique to get sharp images of several nearby large stars, including Antares in Scorpius and everyone’s favorite incipient supernova, Betelgeuse in Orion.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 27 Nov. 2025
Using data from the VLT’s FORS2 instrument, the astronomers found that the initial blast of material from the supernova was shaped like an olive.
—Chris Young, Interesting Engineering, 13 Nov. 2025
By quickly training the VLT at the exploding star, astronomers could observe an initial breakout shape that forms before the supernova explosion starts interacting with surrounding material.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 13 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for supernova
Cite this Entry
“Supernova.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/supernova. Accessed 2 Dec. 2025.
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supernova
noun
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