Abstract
Most novæ are discovered by amateurs, a large proportion of comets are found by amateurs, many minor planets and variable stars have recently been discovered by amateurs — and yet the number of supernovæ (SNe) discovered by amateurs is still very small. Why should this be so? Unlike the objects mentioned above, whose discovery position cannot be predicted, SNe occur in or near the amorphous glow of a galaxy, and therefore the search area is limited to a few arc minutes. Is it because they are rare? No; professionals regularly find SNe that could have been found with amateur equipment. Is it because amateurs are not interested? No; there are probably many more amateurs searching for SNe than for comets and novæ.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Marsden Dr B, Private communication.
Kahn R N, ‘Desperately Seeking Supernovae’, Sky & Telescope 73, June 1987, p594.
Reitmeyer W L, ‘Astronomy in New Mexico’, Sky & Telescope 45, Jan 1973, p20
Liller W, The Cambridge Guide to Astronomical Discovery, Cambridge University Press, 1992, p72.
Johnson W, ‘Restructuring of Sunsearch’, Webb Soc. Deep Sky Observer 3, Oct 1993, p3.
‘News notes: Supernova Census’, Sky & Telescope 84, Aug 1992, p129.
Barbon R, Cappellarno E and Terrato M, The Asiago Supernova Catalogue, July 1988.
Thompson G D and Bryan J, Supernova Search Charts and Handbook, Cambridge University Press, 1989.
Liller W, op. cit., p66.
Thompson G D and Bryan J, op. cit., p59.
Arbour R W, ‘Deep-Sky Photography Without Guiding’, Sky & Telescope 78, Nov 1989, p538.
Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1995 Springer-Verlag London
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Arbour, R.W. (1995). Supernovæ. In: Moore, P. (eds) The Observational Amateur Astronomer. Practical Astronomy. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-0389-9_15
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-0389-9_15
Publisher Name: Springer, London
Print ISBN: 978-3-540-19899-4
Online ISBN: 978-1-4471-0389-9
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive