Stargazers are on high alert for the reappearance of T Corona Borealis, a star system that briefly lit up the skies in 1946 and hasn’t been seen since. Known for its rare and explosive brilliance, the star—fondly called T Cor Bor—is due for another dazzling outburst, marking a once-in-eight-decades spectacle.
Michael Woodman, the now 94-year-old amateur astronomer who first spotted T Cor Bor’s brilliance as a schoolboy, remains at the heart of this story. Back then, peering out of his Newport bedroom window, he noticed an unusually bright star nestled within the constellation Corona Borealis. “I thought, ‘I’ve never seen anything like that before,’” he recalls. Boldly, he wrote to the Astronomer Royal, whose reply confirmed Woodman’s discovery as the first sighting in the UK of a nova event from the star system some 3,000 light-years away.
That rare celestial event is now expected to repeat. Astronomers are meticulously scanning the skies, hoping to catch T Cor Bor’s fleeting brilliance. Nestled within the curved constellation of Corona Borealis, this star system remains invisible to the naked eye, but the moment it erupts, it will briefly shine like a cosmic beacon.
Dr. Jenifer Millard from Fifth Star Labs explains the science behind the phenomenon: two stars—a compact white dwarf and a red giant—engage in a gravitational dance. The white dwarf siphons material from its larger neighbor until the buildup triggers a nuclear explosion. Known as a nova, this event releases extraordinary energy, making the star blaze like a Christmas tree, albeit for only a few days.
Astronomers like Dr. Chris North of Cardiff University are optimistic the show could happen soon. “The brightness dip we’re seeing might just be the precursor to an eruption,” he says.
For Woodman, the prospect of witnessing T Cor Bor’s explosion again is thrilling. “Eighty years on, we’re all looking at the skies again,” he says with a chuckle. Should he glimpse the nova once more, he’ll hold a unique claim: the only person to have seen it twice.
“Got to keep breathing!” Woodman jokes, his excitement reflecting the shared anticipation of stargazers worldwide.
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