Would be a very interesting sight to see to be sure.
My understanding is that the axis on which it spins would not force any gamma rays towards Earth's direction so it would amount to a light show and the loss of a landmark star, without danger to us.
A supernova that close would probably afford us a great deal of insight into things we aren't sure about hopefully in this generation.
That assumption relies on a lot of theory. One things for sure, if that star goes bang our theories will improve at a rapid rate.
Well, put another way, the theories have to be wrong in exactly the right way for the results to be hazardous. If they're wrong in some other fashion (such as our misjudging what exactly causes a GRB), then hey, no problem. If the theories surrounding gamma ray bursts and supernovae are right, we're probably safe. They have to be mostly right, but get the directionality of the burst wrong, before we're in trouble. Or the star would have to shift on its axis and point precisely where we don't want it.
Poof (Score:1)
My understanding is that the axis on which it spins would not force any gamma rays towards Earth's direction so it would amount to a light show and the loss of a landmark star, without danger to us.
A supernova that close would probably afford us a great deal of insight into things we aren't sure about hopefully in this generation.
Re: (Score:2)
My understanding is that the axis on which it spins would not force any gamma rays towards Earth's direction
That assumption relies on a lot of theory. One things for sure, if that star goes bang our theories will improve at a rapid rate.
Re:Poof (Score:4, Informative)
That assumption relies on a lot of theory. One things for sure, if that star goes bang our theories will improve at a rapid rate.
Well, put another way, the theories have to be wrong in exactly the right way for the results to be hazardous. If they're wrong in some other fashion (such as our misjudging what exactly causes a GRB), then hey, no problem. If the theories surrounding gamma ray bursts and supernovae are right, we're probably safe. They have to be mostly right, but get the directionality of the burst wrong, before we're in trouble. Or the star would have to shift on its axis and point precisely where we don't want it.