| word | supernova |
|---|---|
| definition | (1) The explosion of a star that causes it to become extremely bright. (2) Something that explodes into prominence or popularity. |
| eg_sentence | After exploding, a nova leaves a “white dwarf” which may explode again in the future, but a supernova destroys the entire star. |
| explanation | A nova, despite its name, isn't actually a “new” star, but rather one that wasn't noticed until it exploded, when it may increase in brightness by a million times before returning to its previous state a few days later. A supernova is far larger; a star in its supernova state may emit a billion times as much light as previously. After a few weeks it begins to dim, until it eventually ceases to exist; it's often replaced by a black hole. (Though remains that were shot out into space may survive; those of a great supernova seen in A.D. 1054 are now known as the Crab Nebula.) All this may serve as a warning to those human stars whose fame explodes too rapidly; supernovas of this kind have sometimes vanished by the following year |
| IPA | ˌsupərˈnoʊvə |
Tags: mwvb::unit:14, mwvb::unit:14:word, mwvb::word, mwvb::word-cloze, mwvb::word-reverse, obsidian_to_anki
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