Fermi Identifies Hidden Engine behind Superluminous Supernovae

The superluminous supernova SN 2017egm was discovered by ESA’Gaia mission on May 23, 2017; it exploded in a massive barred spiral galaxy known as NGC 3191, shown on the left before the eruption; the image at right, taken on July 1, 2017, shows the supernova outshining the entire galaxy. Image credit: SDSS / PS1 / NOT+ALFSOC / Bose et al.

New gamma-ray observations from NASA’s Fermi Space Telescope suggest ultra-magnetic neutron stars called magnetars could be fueling superluminous supernovae, a rare class of stellar explosions with peak luminosities 10-100 times greater than those of standard core-collapse supernovae.

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