Champagne Supernova
Tuesday 26 May 2015
the first in a new series of events we're curating at Second Home in London, Champagne Supernova will combine two nice things: science and bubbles
first up, Dr Andrew Gregory will tell us about the 1054 supernova which was observed and recorded by Chinese astronomers and by other cultures around the world. his talk will investigate the recording of the 1054 supernova and the cultural importance it had in the societies that recorded it and explore why this phenomenon went virtually unrecorded in the West
next, we'll hear from Dr Steve Fossey, an astronomer based at UCL’s teaching observatory in NW London. in January 2014, during a routine telescope demonstration, Steve and his students were astonished to serendipitously discover a bright supernova - the closest in a generation - in the nearby galaxy known as Messier 82 aka the ‘Cigar Galaxy’. Steve will tell the story of that night and its aftermath: the race to report, and recent results that promise fresh insight into the nature of these cosmologically significant stellar explosions
at some point, there will be champagne. and it's all free – just RSVP
more on Steve's supernova discovery: