This is a list of supernovae that are of historical significance. These include supernovae that were observed prior to the availability of photography, and individual events that have been the subject of a scientific paper that contributed to supernova theory.
An alternative, complete and updated list can be found in the Open Supernova Catalog. Recent supernovae can be found at Latest Supernovae. Supernovae in 2023 include SN 2023ixf in Messier 101 (May 2023), [1] SN 2023idj in NGC 4568 (May 2023) and SN 2023gfo in NGC 4995 (April 2023).
In most entries, the year when the supernova was seen is part of the designation (1st column).
Supernova designation (year) | Constellation | Apparent magnitude | Distance (light years) | Type | Galaxy | Comments |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SN 185 | Centaurus | −4 (?) [2] | 9,100 [3] | Ia (?) | Milky Way | Surviving description sketchy; modern estimates of maximum apparent magnitude vary from +4 to −8. The remnant is probably RCW 86, some 8200 ly distant, [4] making it comparable to SN 1572. Some researchers have suggested it was a comet, not a supernova. [5] [6] |
SN 386 | Sagittarius | +1.5 | 14,700 | II | Milky Way | "suggested SN", [7] candidate remnant could be G11.2-0.3. [8] [9] There are three suggestions and doubtful if SN at all or classical nova or something else. [10] |
SN 393 | Scorpius | –0 | 3,400 | II/Ib | Milky Way | "possible SN", [7] could also be classical nova or something else [10] |
SN 1006 | Lupus | –7.5 [11] | 7,200 | Ia | Milky Way | Widely observed on Earth; in apparent magnitude, the brightest stellar event in recorded history. [12] |
SN 1054 | Taurus | –6 [13] | 6,500 | II | Milky Way | Remnant is the Crab Nebula with its pulsar (neutron star) |
SN 1181 | Cassiopeia | 0 | 7,100 | sub-luminous Type Iax supernova | Milky Way | Remnant is Pa 30 with its hot stellar remnant [14] |
SN 1572 | Cassiopeia | –4.0 | 8,000 | Ia | Milky Way | Tycho's Nova |
Kepler's Supernova | Ophiuchus | –3 | 14,000 | Ia | Milky Way | Kepler's Star; most recent readily visible supernova within the Milky Way |
Cas A, c. 1680 | Cassiopeia | +5 | 9,000 | IIb | Milky Way | Apparently never visually conspicuous, due to interstellar dust; but the remnant, Cas A, is the brightest extrasolar radio source in the sky |
G1.9+0.3, cal. 1868 | Sagittarius | (visible light masked by dust) | 25,000 | Ia | Milky Way | Located near the Galactic Center; "Posthumously" discovered in 1985; age determined in 2008 |
SN 1885A | Andromeda | +5.85 [15] | 2,500,000 | Ipec | Andromeda Galaxy | First observation of an extragalactic supernova |
SN 1895B | Centaurus | +8.0 [16] | 10,900,000 | Ia | NGC 5253 | |
SN 1937C | Canes Venatici | +8.4 [16] | 13,000,000 | Ia | IC 4182 | |
SN 1939C | Cepheus | +13 | 25,200,000 | I | Fireworks Galaxy | |
SN 1940B | Coma Berenices | +12.8 | 38,000,000 | II-P | NGC 4725 | |
SN 1961V | Perseus | +12.5 | 30,000,000 | II? | NGC 1058 | Potential supernova impostor [17] |
SN 1972E | Centaurus | +8.7 [18] | 10,900,000 | Ia | NGC 5253 | Followed for more than a year; became the prototypical Type Ia supernova |
SN 1983N | Hydra | +11.8 | 15,000,000 | Ib | Messier 83 | First observation of a Type Ib supernova |
SN 1986J | Andromeda | +18.4 | 30,000,000 | IIn | NGC 891 | Bright in the radio frequency range |
SN 1987A | Dorado | +2.9 | 160,000 | IIpec | Large Magellanic Cloud | Intense radiation reached Earth on February 23, 1987, 7:35:35 UT. Notable for archival photos of progenitor star and detection of supernova neutrinos. Most recent Local Group supernova |
SN 1993J | Ursa Major | +10.7 [19] | 11,000,000 | IIb | M81 | One of the brightest supernovae in the northern sky since 1954 |
SN 1994D | Virgo | +15.2 | 50,000,000 | Ia | NGC 4526 | |
SN 1998bw | Telescopium | ? | 140,000,000 | Ic | ESO 184-G82 | Linked to GRB 980425, which was the first time a gamma-ray burst has been linked to a supernova. |
SN 1999eh | Lynx | +18.3 +/- 0.3 | 84,000,000 | I | NGC 2770 | First supernovae in this galaxy, where 3 more was detected later. |
SN 2002bj | Lupus | +14.7 | 160,000,000 | IIn | NGC 1821 | AM Canum Venaticorum-type outburst. [20] |
SN 2003fg | Boötes | 4,000,000,000 | Ia | anonymous galaxy | Also known as the "Champagne supernova" | |
SN 2004dj | Camelopardalis | 8,000,000 | II-P | NGC 2403 | NGC 2403 is an outlying member of the M81 Group | |
SN 2005ap | Coma Berenices | 4,700,000,000 | II | ? | Announced in 2007 to be the brightest supernova up to that point. | |
SN 2005gj | Cetus | 865,000,000 | Ia/II-n | ? | Notable for having characteristics of both Type Ia and Type IIn. | |
SN 2005gl | Pisces | +16.5 | 200,000,000 | II-n | NGC 266 | Star could be found on old pictures. [21] |
SN 2006gy | Perseus | +15 | 240,000,000 | IIn (*) | NGC 1260 | Observed by NASA, *with a peak of over 70 days, possibly a new type. |
SN 2007bi | Virgo | +18.3 | Ia | anonymous dwarf galaxy | Extremely bright and long-lasting, the first good observational match for the pair-instability supernova model postulated for stars of initial mass greater than 140 solar masses (even better than SN 2006gy). The precursor is estimated at 200 solar masses, similar to the first stars of the early universe. [22] | |
SN 2007uy | Lynx | +16.8 | 84,000,000 | Ibc | NGC 2770 | Got overshadowed by SN 2008D. |
SN 2008D | Lynx | 88,000,000 | Ibc | NGC 2770 | First supernova to be observed while it exploded. | |
MENeaC Abell399.3.14.0 | Aries | +28.7 | 1,000,000,000 (z=0.0613) | Ia | anonymous red globular cluster associated with anonymous red elliptical galaxy in cluster Abell 399 | Observed in 2009. Supernova associated with a globular cluster [23] [24] |
SN 2009ip | Piscis Austrinus | 66,000,000 | IIn | NGC 7259 | In 2009 classified as supernova. Redesignated as Luminous blue variable (LBV) Supernova impostor. [25] In September 2012 classified as a young type IIn supernova. [26] | |
SN 2010lt | Camelopardalis | +17.0 | 240,000,000 | Ia (sub-luminous) | UGC 3378 | Discovered by 10-year-old girl, the youngest person to discover a supernova. |
SN 2011fe | Ursa Major | +10.0 | 21,000,000 | Ia | M101 | One of the very few extragalactic supernovae visible in 50mm binoculars. |
SN 2014J | Ursa Major | +10.5 | 11,500,000 | Ia | M82 | Closest supernova since SN 2004dj in NGC 2403. |
ASASSN-15lh SN 2015L | Indus | +16.9 | 3,800,000,000 | Ic | APMUKS(BJ) B215839.70−615403.9 | Most luminous hypernova ever observed. |
IPTF14hls | Ursa Major | +17.7 | 509,000,000 | unknown | SDSS J092034.44+504148.7 (possible dwarf galaxy) | Unusual supernova |
SN 2016aps | Draco | +18.11 | 3,600,000,000 | SLSB-II | ? | Most luminous supernova-like event to date. |
SN 2018zd | Camelopardalis | +17.8 | 70,000,000 | Ia-csm | NGC 2146 | First electron capture supernova ever detected |
SN 2019hgp | Boötes | +20.16 | 920,000,000 | Icn | First detected supernova of a Wolf-Rayet star [27] [28] | |
SN 2020fqv | Virgo | +19.0 | 59,400,000 | IIb | NGC 4568 | Earliest known observation of an explosion, 26 hours after [29] [30] [31] |
SN 2020tlf | Boötes | +15.89 | 120,000,000 | IIn | NGC 5731 | First red supergiant observed before, during and after explosion; earliest known observation, at 130 days before explosion [32] [33] |
SN 2022jli | Cetus | +14 | 75,000,000 | type I-c | NGC 157 | Type Ic, shows periodicity [34] [35] [36] [37] |
SN 2023ixf | Ursa Major | +10.8 | 21,000,000 | type II-L | Pinwheel Galaxy (M101) [1] | Closest and brightest supernova since SN 2014J |
Year | Total | Type I | Type II | LBV | Brighter than apmag 13 | Apmag of brightest Supernova of that year |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2023 [38] | 19859 | 1430 | 417 | 7 | 2 | 10.9 (2023ixf in M101) |
2022 [39] | 21368 | 1732 | 396 | 7 | 4 | 12.3 (2022hrs in NGC 4647) |
2021 [40] | 23665 | 1849 | 465 | 5 | 8 | 12.0 (2021aefx in NGC 1566) |
2020 [41] | 21775 | 1648 | 451 | 7 | 7 | 11.8 (2020ue in NGC 4636) |
2019 [42] | 18767 | 1652 | 485 | 9 | 1 | 13.0 (2019np in NGC 3254) |
2018 [43] | 9525 | 1206 | 332 | 7 | 5 | 12.7 (2018pv in NGC 3941) |
2017 [44] | 8293 | 746 | 218 | 4 | 3 | 11.5 (2017cbv in NGC 5643) |
2016 [45] | 7737 | 681 | 226 | 3 | 0 | 13.0 (2016coj in NGC 4125) |
2015 [46] | 4474 | 707 | 214 | 4 | 2 | 12.9 (2015F in NGC 2442) |
2014 [47] | 2243 | 528 | 175 | 2 | 3 | 10.1 (2014J in Messier 82) |
2013 [48] | 1922 | 498 | 190 | 7 | 6 | 11.3 (2013aa in NGC 5643) |
2012 [49] | 1223 | 550 | 152 | 8 | 5 | 11.9 (2012fr in NGC 1365) |
2011 [50] | 1129 | 439 | 160 | 10 | 7 | 9.9 (2011fe in Messier 101) |
2010 [51] | 931 | 279 | 135 | 7 | 2 | 12.8 (2010ih in NGC 2325) |
2009 [52] | 576 | 202 | 137 | 1 | 0 | 13.0 (2009ig in NGC 1015) |
2008 [53] | 511 | 251 | 143 | 1 | 3 | 12.4 (2008ge in NGC 1527) |
2007 [54] | 605 | 442 | 130 | 1 | 3 | 12.0 (2007it in NGC 5530) |
2006 [55] | 558 | 418 | 124 | 2 | 3 | 12.1 (2006dd in NGC 1316) |
2005 [56] | 385 | 273 | 94 | 1 | 2 | 12.3 (2005df in NGC 1559) |
2004 [57] | 343 | 221 | 79 | 0 | 2 | 11.2 (2004dj in NGC 2403) |
2003 [58] | 384 | 198 | 89 | 1 | 1 | 12.3 (2003hv in NGC 1201) |
2002 [59] | 353 | 163 | 64 | 0 | 1 | 12.3 (2002ap in Messier 74) |
2001 [60] | 310 | 108 | 75 | 0 | 2 | 12.3 (2001e1 in NGC 1448) |
2000 [61] | 199 | 76 | 49 | 1 | 0 | 13.1 (2000cx in NGC 528) |
A supernova is a powerful and luminous explosion of a star. A supernova occurs during the last evolutionary stages of a massive star, or when a white dwarf is triggered into runaway nuclear fusion. The original object, called the progenitor, either collapses to a neutron star or black hole, or is completely destroyed to form a diffuse nebula. The peak optical luminosity of a supernova can be comparable to that of an entire galaxy before fading over several weeks or months.
Messier 61 is an intermediate barred spiral galaxy in the Virgo Cluster of galaxies. It was first discovered by Barnaba Oriani on May 5, 1779, six days before Charles Messier discovered the same galaxy. Messier had observed it on the same night as Oriani but had mistaken it for a comet. Its distance has been estimated to be 45.61 million light years from the Milky Way Galaxy. It is a member of the M61 Group of galaxies, which is a member of the Virgo II Groups, a series of galaxies and galaxy clusters strung out from the southern edge of the Virgo Supercluster.
Messier 81 (also known as NGC 3031 or Bode's Galaxy) is a grand design spiral galaxy about 12 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. It has a D25 isophotal diameter of 29.44 kiloparsecs (96,000 light-years). Because of its relative proximity to the Milky Way galaxy, large size, and active galactic nucleus (which harbors a 70 million M☉ supermassive black hole), Messier 81 has been studied extensively by professional astronomers. The galaxy's large size and relatively high brightness also makes it a popular target for amateur astronomers. In late February 2022, astronomers reported that M81 may be the source of FRB 20200120E, a repeating fast radio burst.
Messier 74 is a large spiral galaxy in the equatorial constellation Pisces. It is about 32 million light-years away from Earth. The galaxy contains two clearly defined spiral arms and is therefore used as an archetypal example of a grand design spiral galaxy. The galaxy's low surface brightness makes it the most difficult Messier object for amateur astronomers to observe. Its relatively large angular size and the galaxy's face-on orientation make it an ideal object for professional astronomers who want to study spiral arm structure and spiral density waves. It is estimated that M74 hosts about 100 billion stars.
NGC 6946, sometimes referred to as the Fireworks Galaxy, is a face-on intermediate spiral galaxy with a small bright nucleus, whose location in the sky straddles the boundary between the northern constellations of Cepheus and Cygnus. Its distance from Earth is about 25.2 million light-years or 7.72 megaparsecs, similar to the distance of M101 in the constellation Ursa Major. Both were once considered to be part of the Local Group, but are now known to be among the dozen bright spiral galaxies near the Milky Way but beyond the confines of the Local Group. NGC 6946 lies within the Virgo Supercluster.
NGC 4725 is an intermediate barred spiral galaxy with a prominent ring structure, located in the northern constellation of Coma Berenices near the north galactic pole. It was discovered by German-born British astronomer William Herschel on April 6, 1785. The galaxy lies at a distance of approximately 40 megalight-years from the Milky Way. NGC 4725 is the brightest member of the Coma I Group of the Coma-Sculptor Cloud, although it is relatively isolated from the other members of this group. This galaxy is strongly disturbed and is interacting with neighboring spiral galaxy NGC 4747, with its spiral arms showing indications of warping. The pair have an angular separation of 24′, which corresponds to a projected linear separation of 370 kly. A tidal plume extends from NGC 4747 toward NGC 4725.
NGC 7793 is a flocculent spiral galaxy in the southern constellation of Sculptor. It was discovered in 1826 by Scottish astronomer James Dunlop. The galaxy is located at a distance of 12.2 million light years and is receding with a heliocentric radial velocity of 227 km/s. NGC 7793 is one of the five brightest galaxies within the Sculptor Group.
SN 1994D was a Type Ia supernova event in the outskirts of galaxy NGC 4526. It was offset by 9.0″ west and 7.8″ south of the galaxy center and positioned near a prominent dust lane. It was caused by the explosion of a white dwarf star composed of carbon and oxygen. This event was discovered on March 7, 1994 by R. R. Treffers and associates using the automated 30-inch telescope at Leuschner Observatory. It reached peak visual brightness two weeks later on March 22. Modelling of the light curve indicates the explosion would have been visible around March 3-4. A possible detection of helium in the spectrum was made by W. P. S. Meikle and associates in 1996. A mass of 0.014 to 0.03 M☉ in helium would be needed to produce this feature.
NGC 4088 is an intermediate spiral galaxy in the constellation Ursa Major. The galaxy forms a physical pair with NGC 4085, which is located 11′ away.
NGC 1566, sometimes known as the Spanish Dancer, is an intermediate spiral galaxy in the constellation Dorado, positioned about 3.5° to the south of the star Gamma Doradus. It was discovered on May 28, 1826 by Scottish astronomer James Dunlop. At 10th magnitude, it requires a telescope to view. The distance to this galaxy remains elusive, with measurements ranging from 6 Mpc up to 21 Mpc.
NGC 4639 is a barred spiral galaxy located in the equatorial constellation of Virgo. It was discovered by German-born astronomer William Herschel on April 12, 1784. John L. E. Dreyer described it as "pretty bright, small, extended, mottled but not resolved, 12th magnitude star 1 arcmin to southeast". This is a relatively nearby galaxy, lying approximately 72 million light-years away from the Milky Way. It is a companion to NGC 4654, and the two appear to have interacted roughly 500 million years ago. NGC 4639 is a member of the Virgo Cluster.
SN 2008ax was a helium-rich type Ib core-collapse supernova in the interacting galaxy NGC 4490. It was independently discovered on 3 March 2008 by LOSS and 4 March by Koichi Itagaki. The site had been monitored six hours before discovery, thus constraining the time of the explosion breakout. It was the third-brightest supernova of 2008. The brightness in the B-band peaked about 20 days after the explosion. X-ray emissions were detected from the event, which are most likely the result of shock heating from the supernova ejecta and circumstellar material.
NGC 5806 is an intermediate spiral galaxy in the constellation Virgo. It was discovered on February 24, 1786, by the astronomer John Herschel. It is located about 70 million light-years away from the Milky Way. It is a member of the NGC 5846 Group.
NGC 613 is a barred spiral galaxy located 67 million light years away in the southern constellation of Sculptor. This galaxy was discovered in 1798 by German-English astronomer William Herschel, then re-discovered and catalogued by Scottish astronomer James Dunlop. It was first photographed in 1912, which revealed the spiral form of the nebula. During the twentieth century, radio telescope observations showed that a linear feature in the nucleus was a relatively strong source of radio emission.
SN 1895B was a supernova event in the irregular dwarf galaxy NGC 5253, positioned 16″ east and 23″ north of the galactic center. It is among the closest known extragalactic supernova events. The supernova was discovered by Williamina Fleming on December 12, 1895 after noticing an unusual spectrum on a photographic plate taken July 18, 1895, and was initially given the variable star designation Z Centauri. The light curve is consistent with an event that began ~15 days before the discovery plate was taken, and this indicates the supernova reached a peak visual magnitude of up to 8.49±0.03.
NGC 4424 is a spiral galaxy located in the equatorial constellation of Virgo. It was discovered February 27, 1865 by German astronomer Heinrich Louis d'Arrest. This galaxy is located at a distance of 13.5 million light years and is receding with a heliocentric radial velocity of 442 km/s. It has a morphological class of SB(s)a, which normally indicates a spiral galaxy with a barred structure (SB), no inner ring feature (s), and tightly-wound spiral arms (a). The galactic plane is inclined at an angle of 62° to the line of sight from the Earth. It is a likely member of the Virgo Cluster of galaxies.
NGC 759 is an elliptical galaxy located 230 million light-years away in the constellation Andromeda. NGC 759 was discovered by astronomer by Heinrich d'Arrest on September 17, 1865. It is a member of Abell 262.
NGC 4076 is a spiral galaxy located 290 million light-years away in the constellation Coma Berenices. The galaxy was discovered by astronomer William Herschel on April 27, 1785 and is a member of the NGC 4065 Group.
NGC 1325 is a flocculent spiral galaxy situated in the constellation of Eridanus. Located about 75 million light years away, it is a member of the Eridanus cluster of galaxies, a cluster of about 200 galaxies. It was discovered by William Herschel on 19 December 1799.