Binary Star System Set to Explode as Supernova Near Earth

Astronomers have discovered a binary star system, located 150 light-years away, poised to collide and trigger a supernova explosion. This event is projected to be ten times brighter than the moon. The stars are part of a rare high mass compact binary star system. Typically, binary systems involve stars orbiting each other, but it's unusual for such massive objects to be on a collision course. James Munday from the University of Warwick (UK), the lead researcher, noted his excitement upon identifying this system with a high total mass near our galaxy. An international team used major optical telescopes to assess the system's compactness. Observations revealed the stars are exceptionally close, one sixtieth of the Earth-Sun distance, and possess a combined mass 1.56 times that of the sun. This indicates an impending type 1a supernova, estimated to occur in approximately 23 billion years. Currently, the stars orbit each other every 14 hours, gradually decreasing until they orbit in under a minute before colliding. Ingrid Pelisoli, also from The University of Warwick, emphasized the significance of this discovery, suggesting such systems may be relatively common. The ongoing survey aims to uncover more type 1a supernova progenitors, contributing to understanding the origins of these explosions. The research findings were published in *Nature Astronomy*.