Featured Image
Supernova SN1997D, taken at the European Southern Observatory in la Silla, Chile with a 0.9 m telescope in the blue band.
What is this image?
This is supernova SN1997D. This is the supernova that I discovered in 1997, fairly early in my career. I chose it not because of its beauty, but because that was such a memorable night for me. I couldn't believe I was actually the first one to see the explosion of a star more than 50 million light-years away, and that changed my life. I was fascinated by the experience and the outcome of it.
I don't work in the field of supernovae, but my curiosity as an observer and a scientist drove me to the discovery. Even though I had already defended my PhD thesis, that night I felt like a scientist for the first time.
Publication Date: June, 2008