Glossary term: Nova
Description: Una nova es una estrella que se vuelve repentinamente mucho más brillante, hasta alcanzar un brillo muchas veces superior al que tenía antes. El nombre proviene del latín «nova stella» (estrella nueva), término que se utilizaba en la Europa de principios de la Edad Moderna para describir las estrellas brillantes que aparecían de repente en el cielo. Las novas han sido observadas como «estrellas invitadas» por muchas culturas diferentes.
Las novas se producen cuando una enana blanca acumula gas procedente de una estrella compañera en un sistema binario cercano. Este gas se acumula en la atmósfera de la enana blanca hasta que alcanza la temperatura suficiente para encenderse mediante fusión nuclear. Esta bola de fuego nuclear hace que la enana blanca aumente su brillo en varios órdenes de magnitud. A diferencia de una supernova de tipo Ia, la enana blanca permanece intacta tras esta explosión. Esto significa que todo el proceso puede volver a comenzar y que la nova puede repetirse.
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Term and definition status: The original definition of this term in English have been approved by a research astronomer and a teacher The translation of this term and its definition is still awaiting approval
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Related Media
The Classical Nova GK Persei
Caption: This composite image shows the aftermath of a stellar explosion known as a nova, specifically the remnant of a classical nova called GK Persei. A nova occurs when a very dense star called a white dwarf pulls hydrogen-rich gas from a companion star in a binary system until the accumulated material ignites in a powerful thermonuclear explosion. This sudden release of energy sweeps material outward and produces bright X-ray, optical, and radio emission that can be studied long after the blast.
GK Persei was for a very short time in 1901 one of the brightest stars in the sky. Classical novae like GK Persei temporarily brighten dramatically — sometimes to thousands of times their usual luminosity — before fading over months or years as the expanding shell moves through space. In this image taken over 100 years since the nova's 1901 brightening, X-rays (shown in blue) reveal very hot gas left behind by the explosion, optical data (yellow) show clumps of matter ejected from the star’s surface, and radio information (pink) highlights high-energy electrons energized by the expanding nova shock wave. Studying novae helps scientists learn about how stars interact in binary systems and how powerful bursts of energy shape the material around them.
The nature of the pink blob in the lower left is not known.
Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/RIKEN/D.Takei et al; Optical: NASA/STScI; Radio: NRAO/VLA
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