What happens when a Sun dies? To find the answers, astronomers have directly imaged two stellar explosions, known as novae, within days of their eruption.

These observations provided unprecedented detail, revealing that the aftermath of these explosions is more intricate than previously thought. Using the Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy (CHARA Array) in California, the team captured how material is expelled from the star, exposing multiple outflows and delays in the ejection process.

The breakthrough was made possible by interferometry, a technique that combines light from several telescopes to produce sharp, high-resolution images of rapidly changing cosmic events.

"The images give us a close-up view of how material is ejected away from the star during the explosion," said

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