An international team of scientists led by Israeli and U.S. researchers has identified a new type of supernova that offers an unprecedented view into the inner layers of giant stars and how the universe creates the elements essential for life
The discovery, recently published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature, could reshape science’s understanding of stellar evolution and the origins of matter.
Giant stars are believed to follow an “onion” structure, with lighter elements like hydrogen and helium in outer layers and heavier elements, including iron, concentrated in the core. Until now, observations of supernovae—the explosive deaths of stars—mostly revealed only the outer layers, leaving the deeper regions largely hidden. The newly studied explosion, named SN2021yfj, revealed strong signals of heavier elements, including silicon, sulfur, and argon, offering a rare glimpse into the star’s core.
Although more than 25,000 supernovae have been studied, this is the first time heavy elements have been detected in this way, making SN2021yfj an exceptionally rare and scientifically valuable event.