Scientists spot evidence of two huge companion stars that blew up
Scientists have discovered evidence of two massive companion stars in a binary system that both exploded as supernovas. Observations from NASA's Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope helped identify the Jellyfish Nebula and a nearby remnant as part of this dual stellar event.
Why it matters
This discovery provides new insights into the life cycles of binary star systems and the formation of supernova remnants in our galaxy.
This multiwavelength scene shows the Jellyfish Nebula supernova remnant (right), the interstellar cloud it is interacting with, and a distinctive curving filament to its upper left. The filament, which is shown here both in optical and ultraviolet (UV) light, is the visible part of an overlapping supernova remnant, G189.6+3.3, that is more prominent in radio and X-rays. The brilliant star at far right is Propus. The image was released on June 17, 2026. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and M. Michailidis et al. 2026; optical: DSS; infrared: NASA/WISE/JPL-Caltech/UCLA; ultraviolet: NASA/Swift/Handout via REUTERS
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