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Mystery #2Tier 2-3stars / space

What is a supernova?

Once in a while, a single star suddenly blazes so brightly it can outshine an entire galaxy of billions of stars, for a few weeks, then fades. This is a supernova. What could make a star explode like that?

The Crab Nebula, the glowing wreckage of a star that exploded as a supernova.
Photo: NASA, ESA · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons

Your guess

What's your hunch about what makes a giant star blow up in a supernova?

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