SN 1987A was a supernova in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way about 168,000 light-years away. It was the closest supernova to be observed since the invention of the telescope, and it was visible to the naked eye in the southern hemisphere. The progenitor was a blue supergiant star, Sanduleak -69 202. A burst of neutrinos from the explosion was detected by underground observatories in Japan, the United States and the Soviet Union a few hours before the light was seen, giving direct evidence of the core collapse of a massive star. The event has been studied by many telescopes ever since, including the Hubble Space Telescope.
Before and after
- 1987The tomb of the Lord of Sipan is found
- 1987Child mortality falls below 10% worldwide
- 24 January 1987Birth of Luis Suárez
- 22 February 1987Death of Andy Warhol
- 24 February 1987SN 1987A
- 1 April 1987Founding of Australian Securities Exchange
- 19 April 1987Birth of Maria Sharapova
- 19 June 19871987 Hipercor bombing
- 24 June 1987Birth of Lionel Messi
More in Universe & space
- 1 May 1949Discovery of Nereid
- 20 August 1977Launch of Voyager 2
- 5 March 1979Discovery of Thebe
- 16 June 1989Discovery of Proteus
- 23 July 1995Discovery of Comet Hale-Bopp
- 15 May 2005Discovery of Nix
The era
This moment belongs to the Contemporary world (1945 CE to today), the world since 1945. You can also browse everything in the 20th century.