Kaliningrad Astronomers Help Chart Supernova's Fading Light

Members of the IKBFU Astronomical Community have photographed and measured the brightness of supernova SN2026sqf — located in the galaxy NGC 3310, discovered on 8 July, and now gradually fading — a Type II supernova that results from the gravitational collapse of a massive star in the final stages of its evolution.

Alexey Baigashov, Head of the Astronomical Community:
This process releases an enormous amount of energy — the outburst of which we observe as a supernova flash. Such a flash can shine brighter than an entire galaxy for several days. For example, in the photograph we have obtained, the SN2026sqf flash is quite comparable in brightness to the nucleus of the galaxy NGC 3310 — which is located slightly above and to the right of it in the image — and in which the supernova itself is situated. Yet this galaxy, situated 42 million light‑years away from us, is only half the size of our Milky Way, which means its core contains billions of stars.

Alexey Baigashov, Head of the Astronomical Community:

This process releases an enormous amount of energy — the outburst of which we observe as a supernova flash. Such a flash can shine brighter than an entire galaxy for several days. For example, in the photograph we have obtained, the SN2026sqf flash is quite comparable in brightness to the nucleus of the galaxy NGC 3310 — which is located slightly above and to the right of it in the image — and in which the supernova itself is situated. Yet this galaxy, situated 42 million light‑years away from us, is only half the size of our Milky Way, which means its core contains billions of stars.

Kaliningrad astronomers have measured the brightness of supernova SN2026sqf (ID 315759) and sent their data to the international Transient Name Server (TNS) — a platform that aggregates data from observatories, automated systems, and amateur astronomers. This is used to build a light curve, which tracks the supernova's brightness over time and helps researchers understand the physical processes at play. The Kaliningrad measurements have now been added to the SN2026sqf light curve, revealing that the supernova has faded by one full apparent magnitude — from 12.8m to 13.9m — within ten days of its discovery.

Kaliningrad Astronomers Help Chart Supernova's Fading Light | Image 1

Kaliningrad Astronomers Help Chart Supernova's Fading Light | Image 2

Kaliningrad Astronomers Help Chart Supernova's Fading Light | Image 3

Mentioned persons

Alexey Baigashov

Head of the Astronomical Community, Junior Researcher at the Laboratory of Astrophysics