A team of astronomers has observed a new phenomenon in the aftermath of SN 2012au, an extremely energetic supernova discovered on March 14, 2012 in the barred spiral galaxy NGC 4790. Unlike most supernovae that fade away, SN 2012au continues to shine today thanks to a powerful new pulsar. Image credit: NASA / ESA / J. DePasquale, STScI. As large stars explode, their interiors collapse down to a point at which all their particles become neutrons. If...
