<p>No. You likely saw a plane's landing lights, a satellite flare or a shooting star (at least something in the atmosphere or low earth orbit).</p>
<p>Two main reasons:</p>
<ul>
<li>A <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light_curve#Supernovae" rel="noreferrer">supernova lasts for weeks</a> with only gradually decreasing
brightness.</li>
<li>Stars are so tiny that they don't have any visual spatial
extent, even as supernova. See also <a href="https://astronomy.stackexchange.com/questions/23566/device-used-to-measure-stellar-radii">this question</a> on stellar radii.</li>
</ul>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-15T10:26:41.143Z
Also any visible star going supernovae would be world news. So if you don't see it on your local news sources, it wasn't a supernovae.
Rob
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-16T22:21:22.413Z
@Rob. Someone had to see it first for it to get to the news
Mad Physicist
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-17T11:01:23.093Z
@MadPhysicist That someone would be scientists who are scanning for events like this, not just some guy.
Tomáš Zato
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-22T12:12:27.333Z
@TomášZato-ReinstateMonica not necessarily: "some guy" has been the first to discover a supernovae before: https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/417575-discovered-a-supernova-last-night/ & https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmyjEI34BQA
Aaron F
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-11-04T23:28:29.850Z
Before the advent of automated searches in about the mid-ninety's, almost all the supernovae were discovered by amateurs. It was sort of a sport. (in which I participated.)  Total numbers were about a dozen per year.
D. Halsey
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-15T09:00:10.847Z
2022-08-15T09:05:24.923Z
2022-08-15T09:05:24.923Z
planetmaker
<p>I was looking over the north-eastern skyline from a west coast location and notice something very bright for well over about 10 or 15 seconds, and then it faded completely. I didn't notice it before and I don't own any equipment that can see that far away but it looked like a star got really bright and then pulled into itself. Is it possible that I just watched a star go super-nova?</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-15T14:34:43.047Z
Which west coast? Here in Europe there were several reportings yesterday of a bright flare which apparently was the fuel particles of a Falcon 9 launched from California.
pela
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-16T09:05:23.840Z
Was it stationary or did it move? If it moved it could be the ISS solar panels reflecting sunlight. Under certain circumstances it can be quite bright.
jcaron
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-16T11:43:01.127Z
@jcaron Or one of the Starlink satellites. At least the OP didn't think it was a UFO, though...
nick012000
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-16T17:20:52.597Z
It would probably help a lot to find out what it was you saw if you provided a more accurate location, direction, and time. The more accurate the better.
jcaron
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-16T17:22:09.877Z
I find it amusing that, even in the context of discussing our _galaxy_, we tend to forget there are other countries in our own planet.
mgarciaisaia
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-17T07:35:34.793Z
@mgarciaisaia I always know it's a USA citizen; no-one else does that online.
iono
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-17T07:36:13.543Z
I just couldn't resist the joke: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firefly
Dominique
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-17T13:13:17.980Z
Have you suddenly gained huge amounts of intelligence, maybe some telekinesis?  You might have an astrocytoma brain tumour.   Quite a *Phenomenon*.
fdomn-m
<star><satellite>
I saw a short-lived brightening and fading of a light in the sky. Was that a star imploding, exploding or going super-nova?
Terry Dunn
# I saw a short-lived brightening and fading of a light in the sky. Was that a star imploding, exploding or going super-nova?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2022-08-15)

I was looking over the north-eastern skyline from a west coast location and notice something very bright for well over about 10 or 15 seconds, and then it faded completely. I didn't notice it before and I don't own any equipment that can see that far away but it looked like a star got really bright and then pulled into itself. Is it possible that I just watched a star go super-nova?

**Tags:** star, satellite

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Which west coast? Here in Europe there were several reportings yesterday of a bright flare which apparently was the fuel particles of a Falcon 9 launched from California.  
> **username_2**: Was it stationary or did it move? If it moved it could be the ISS solar panels reflecting sunlight. Under certain circumstances it can be quite bright.  
> **username_3**: @username_2 Or one of the Starlink satellites. At least the OP didn't think it was a UFO, though...  
> **username_2**: It would probably help a lot to find out what it was you saw if you provided a more accurate location, direction, and time. The more accurate the better.  
> **username_4**: I find it amusing that, even in the context of discussing our _galaxy_, we tend to forget there are other countries in our own planet.  
> **username_5**: @username_4 I always know it's a USA citizen; no-one else does that online.  
> **username_6**: I just couldn't resist the joke: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firefly  
> **username_7**: Have you suddenly gained huge amounts of intelligence, maybe some telekinesis?  You might have an astrocytoma brain tumour.   Quite a *Phenomenon*.  

---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_8 on 2022-08-15. Score: 43

No. You likely saw a plane's landing lights, a satellite flare or a shooting star (at least something in the atmosphere or low earth orbit).

Two main reasons:

* A [supernova lasts for weeks](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light_curve#Supernovae) with only gradually decreasing
  brightness.
* Stars are so tiny that they don't have any visual spatial
  extent, even as supernova. See also [this question](https://astronomy.stackexchange.com/questions/23566/device-used-to-measure-stellar-radii) on stellar radii.

> **Comments:**
> **username_9**: Also any visible star going supernovae would be world news. So if you don't see it on your local news sources, it wasn't a supernovae.  
> **username_10**: @username_9. Someone had to see it first for it to get to the news  
> **username_11**: @MadPhysicist That someone would be scientists who are scanning for events like this, not just some guy.  
> **username_12**: @TomášZato-ReinstateMonica not necessarily: "some guy" has been the first to discover a supernovae before: https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/417575-discovered-a-supernova-last-night/ & https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmyjEI34BQA  
> **username_13**: Before the advent of automated searches in about the mid-ninety's, almost all the supernovae were discovered by amateurs. It was sort of a sport. (in which I participated.)  Total numbers were about a dozen per year.  

---

