Back in 1946, a 15-year-old schoolboy made a surprising discovery as he peered out of his bedroom window.

Michael Woodman, a keen amateur astronomer from Newport, had stayed up late waiting for his father to come home when he noticed something strange in the night sky.

He was the first to spot a second very bright star in the constellation Corona Borealis and wrote to the Astronomer Royal who confirmed his astonishing discovery.

He’d spotted a star system, about 3,000 light years away, called T Corona Borealis – or T Cor Bor for short – that had exploded into brightness, becoming visible for just a few nights.

How to look for T Cor Bor

T Cor Bor is dim at the minute and is well below what you can see with the naked eye.

To find the area of sky where it should appear, first locate the plough and follow its handle to Arcturus. To the west of this star is the curved constellation of Corona Borealis, made up of seven stars, and where T Cor Bor will at some point light up.

“It is only going to be visible to the naked eye for a couple of days.  if you’ve got a small pair of binoculars or a small telescope, you’ll be able to see it for a little bit longer.

What causes the change

The astronomical phenomenon is caused by the interaction between two stars orbiting each other.

A small white dwarf, which is a dead star, is locked in a cosmic dance with a much larger red giant – a star that’s reaching the end of its life.

The compact white dwarf has an immense gravitational pull, so great that it steals material away from its larger neighbour.

Over time, the material it grabs from the other star gets crushed and compressed – until eventually it triggers a nuclear explosion, releasing a huge amount of energy – a process known as going nova.  When that happens, it will shine very brightly.

Astronomers think this process happens on repeat, with an outburst from T Cor Bor occurring about every 80 years. 

Source: Fifth Star Labs