2024 T Coronae Borealis Nova

It might be coming soon to the night sky near you. Yes, it is the 2024 T Coronae Borealis Nova.

No, we don’t expect a Supernova – these are massive explosions that occur when a large mass star explodes at the end of its life. We haven’t seen one of these in the Milky Way since the 1604 supernova.

What we do expect is that a star, T Coronae Borealis (T CrB), will erupt in an explosion sometime this year. T CrB is a binary system including a white dwarf, which is stripping its neighboring red giant of stellar material. The material accretes around the white dwarf building heat and pressure. Eventually, it becomes too much, and there is a huge explosion (i.e., a nova) sending material off into the cosmos.

Because this is something that that repeats itself every 80 years, astronomer believe it will happen soon. In fact, the nova is predicted to occur by September 2024. This explosion won’t be something the lights up the night sky. It will be more like a new star about the same brightness as the North Star (Polaris). We will, of course, keep an eye on it and we’ll post something here if and when there is an update.

The Astronomical League has an observing challenge and special observing award for this event. For more information, see the graphic below and on Facebook.

You can locate T CrB in the constellation Corona Borealis (aka The Northern Crown) between Boötes and Hercules (see the map below). The folks at the Astronomical League have a more detailed map, which might help you locate the exact position of the star.

• Beth Ridgeway. “NASA, Global Astronomers Await Rare Nova Explosion.” NASA. June 6. 2024.
• Elizabeth Gamillo. “How to see T Coronae Borealis, the ‘brightest nova of the generation’.” Astronomy. June 12, 2024.
• Asa Stahl. “How to see the nova (“new star”) in Corona Borealis.” Planetary Society. May 29, 2024.
• Will Sullivan. “A Rare Nova Explosion Will Soon Bring a ‘New Star’ to the Night Sky—How to Catch a Glimpse.” Smithsonian Magazine. April 19, 2024.
• Jim Shelton. “Starburst: Skywatchers on the lookout for an impending nova explosion.” YaleNews. August 22, 2024.
• Samantha Mathewson. “A rare nova ignites a ‘new star’ in the sky this year. Here’s how to see it.” space.com. March 12, 2024.
• “T Coronae Borealis A nova waiting to happen – soon!” Astronomical League.
• B. E. Schaefer (Louisiana State Univ.), B. Kloppenborg (AAVSO), E. O. Waagen (AAVSO), and the AAVSO observers. “Announcing T CrB pre-eruption dip.” aavso.