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When big stars go supernova, the detonation is fatal. But
when smaller stars explode, they often bounce back and shine again. How long
does the recovery take? Astronomers using the XMM-Newton Space Telescope
determined that the star V2487 Oph, which went nova in 1998, resumed its normal
behavior in just 2.7 years, much faster than expected since the nova burst
released about 100,000 times more energy than the sun does in a year.
(10/16/02)
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