‘Once in a lifetime’: A ‘new star’ will be seen in the night sky after 80 years

Stargazers and astronomers are waiting for a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ opportunity to see around a new star in the night sky which will re-appear after a gap of 80 years.
The new star, named Blaze Star or T Coronae Borealis, was last seen from Earth in 1946 and astronomers are now saying that it could re-appear any day.
The star has been long dead but will reignite in an explosion 3,000 light-years from Earth. The resulting brightness will be as bright as the North Star. The star will be visible for only a few days before disappearing for another 80 years. (Also read: Earth to get temporary ‘mini moon’ tonight: Will it be visible from India?)
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime event that will create a lot of new astronomers out there, giving young people a cosmic event they can observe for themselves, ask their own questions, and collect their own data,” said Dr. Rebekah Hounsell, an assistant research scientist specialising in nova events at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in the US told the Independent.
The start was first seen in Germany in 1217. It appeared as a bright mark in the night sky from a brief but powerful explosion. A man named Burchard from Ursberg, who was the first person to see the new star, described it as “a faint star that for a time shone with great light.”
“Typically, nova events are so faint and far away that it’s hard to clearly identify where the erupting energy is concentrated. This one will be really close, with a lot of eyes on it, studying the various wavelengths and hopefully giving us data to start unlocking the structure and specific processes involved. We can’t wait to get the full picture of what’s going on,” said Dr. Elizabeth Hays, chief of the Astroparticle Physics Laboratory at NASA Goddard told the Independent.
But the ‘new star’ is not the only celestial event to look forward to in October, as a “comet of the century” will passing by Earth after 80,000 years. (Also read: What is ‘God of Chaos’? Astronomer updates risk of giant asteroid hitting Earth in 2029)