Pin of the Month - Supernova 1987A

In 1987, an explosion rocked the sky that was unlike anything anyone had seen, not just in living memory, but in centuries. If you happened to look up that night, a bright new star was born. Except, it wasn't the birth of a new star – quite the opposite, actually!

It was a supernova, the violent death of a star whose nuclear fuel ran out. As the outward pressure from nuclear fusion dropped, the core of the star collapsed in on itself. The shockwave from that collapse ripped the star apart, releasing as much energy in a few months as our own sun releases in a hundred million years. 

This month's SciShow Pin of the Month celebrates how this supernova looks right now. As the gases expand into the space around it, the supernova changes so while this pin is accurate today, it'll probably look very different in twenty years. Consider this pin to be a limited-edition!

DETAILS

• Limited edition SciShow Pin of the Month
• Glows in the dark!
• Preorder ships in early October 2024
• Dimensions: 1.25" (3.2cm) long
• Double-post pin with butterfly clasp