UMass Lowell Undergrads Unveil Rare Discovery of a Supernova in Galaxy 21 Million Lightyears Away”.

A supernova exploded in a galaxy 21 million lightyears away from Earth, with a star at least eight times the mass of our sun. This rare phenomenon was discovered by Japanese astronomer Koichi Itagaki in May 2023, sparking interest from scientists around the world.

Three UMass Lowell undergraduates, Jacob Medin, Ian Davis, and Jordan Orenberg, were among those intrigued by the supernova. Funded by the Kennedy College of Sciences’ Science Discoveries program, they spent their summer after their first year studying the supernova under the guidance of Physics Assoc. Prof. Silas Laycock and assistance from Physics Ph.D. student Sayantan Bhattacharya ’21. They used UMass Lowell’s Schueller Observatory to capture images of the supernova and collaborated with Amateur Telescope Makers of Boston to obtain more images.

Using AstroImageJ software to analyze the data, they tracked the magnitude of the supernova over three months by observing its brightness and temperature changes. Their research has now made their data available to the public through the American Association of Variable Star Observers, an organization interested in studying stars that vary in brightness.

Jordan Orenberg expressed his excitement at contributing to understanding supernovas and sharing their findings with the world. Through their research and collaboration, these students have made a valuable contribution to humanity’s knowledge about these fascinating cosmic events.