Nova

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈnəʊ.və/

Definitions

1. A celestial event in which a star experiences a sudden and enormous brightness surge due to nuclear fusion reactions; An astronomical phenomenon where the light output of a star increases dramatically because of explosive processes; A brief period of exceptional luminosity in a star, often resulting from interactions in a binary star system that leads to explosive energy release
2. An astronomical occurrence where a star rapidly increases in brightness due to a thermonuclear explosion on its surface
3. An event marked by a star's abrupt and intense increase in luminosity caused by material accumulation and fusion in a close stellar companion setup

Etymology: A star that suddenly flares up in brightness, then fades over weeks or months, owes its name to a grammatical accident. Latin "novus" meant "new", and the feminine form "nova" was chosen because "stella" ("star") is feminine. So the term was originally a shortened version of "nova stella", meaning "new star". The word was first applied in this sense in 1573, when the Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe observed a bright object appearing in the constellation Cassiopeia. Brahe's observation was of a star that had not been visible before, which is why "new" seemed the right description, even though the phenomenon was a stellar explosion rather than a star being born.

Synonyms: star, supernova