White Dwarf Star Accumulates Material From Another Nearby

Supernov as: (Tim Hedgeland) A supernova is essentially the explosion of a star in outer space. During a supernova occurrence, a star’s luminosity is increased by as much 20 times as the bulk of the star’s mass is blown away at an extremely high velocity. Supernova remnants, including the signature bright light they leave behind, can often be seen in the night sky by the naked eye for several weeks as it gradually diminishes. There are several different kinds of supernovae, which are believed to be caused by two distinct sources. One possible cause for Supernova occurrences results from a star halting its generation of fusion energy from fusing the nuclei of atoms in its core, causing it to collapse under the force of its own gravity. Another possible source occurs when a white dwarf star accumulates material from another nearby star until it nears its

Chandrasekhar limit and undergoes runaway nuclear fusion in its interior, ultimately leading to its destruction. The Chandrasekhar limit is the limit of mass that a body of mass can sustain before gravitational collapse.