Researchers have tracked the development of supernova 1987A since the stellar explosion began
NASA/STScI/CfA/P.Challis
Scientists have finally figured out what is at the centre of a nearby supernova. Supernova 1987A is the first stellar explosion that we have been able to track in detail since it began, and now we know that it left behind a hot neutron star.
There are two possible objects that can be left behind after a star explodes in a supernova: a neutron star, which is a dense stellar corpse made up of primarily neutrons, and…