Tag #Circumstellar Matter

What specific changes in SN 2014C's classification and observed behavior challenged existing supernova models, and what new insights did this reveal about stellar evolution?

An international team, led by Yunnan Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, published findings in The Astrophysical Journal on SN 2014C, a rare supernova in the Pegasus constellation's NGC 7331 galaxy (40–45 million light-years from Earth). Initially classified as type Ib (lacking hydrogen), SN 2014C unexpectedly transitioned to type IIn (high hydrogen), indicating the progenitor star shed its outer hydrogen layer before exploding, leaving dense circumstellar material (CSM).