Horizon investigates hypernovas, the explosive deaths of massive stars twenty times the size of the Sun. These violent blasts may help explain how the very first stars were made
Explosions of extraordinary violence blast through the Universe every day. They are so powerful that if they ever struck our solar system, we would be utterly destroyed. For years no one could work out what was causing them, but now scientists think they have cracked it. The culprit is the most extreme object ever found in the universe - a hypernova. These hypernovas are the death cries of massive stars twenty times the size of the Sun, which meet their ends in vast, apocalyptic explosions. Hypernovas may hold the key to one of the mysteries of the universe - how, billions of years ago, the very first stars were made and the process that created everything we see in the universe began.
Last on
More episodes
Clips
-
Neutron stars
Duration: 00:54
-
Gamma ray bursts explained
Duration: 05:12
-
A window into the cosmic dark age?
Duration: 04:04
Broadcasts
- Thu 18 Oct 2001 21:00Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Two except East, South East & Yorkshire
- Wed 28 Nov 2001 20:00Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Knowledge
- Sun 2 Dec 2001 10:00Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Knowledge
- Sun 2 Dec 2001 13:10Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Knowledge
- Sun 2 Dec 2001 16:00Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Knowledge
- Mon 3 Dec 2001 00:30Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Knowledge
- Wed 16 Jan 2002 19:20Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Knowledge
- Tue 5 Feb 2002 18:30Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Knowledge
- Wed 6 Feb 2002 00:55Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Knowledge