There is more information available on this subject atSupernova on theEnglish Wikipedia.

Epoloch goes supernova after consuming Requiem.

Asupernova (plural:supernovae orsupernovas) is a stellar explosion. They are extremely luminous and cause a burst ofradiation that may briefly outshine an entiregalaxy before fading from view over several weeks or months. During this short interval, a supernova can radiate as much energy as theSun could emit over its life span. The explosion expels much or all of a star's material at a velocity of up to a tenth the speed of light, driving a shock wave into the surrounding interstellar medium. This shock wave sweeps up an expanding shell of gas and dust called a supernova remnant.^[1]

On average, supernovae occur about once every 50 years in a galaxy the size of theMilky Way and play a significant role in enriching the interstellar medium with heavy elements. Furthermore, the expanding shock waves from supernova explosions can trigger the formation of new stars.

History[edit]

In earlyForerunner history, the Forerunners attempted to manipulate several stars in theirregion of space. They subsequently failed and caused several stars to supernova, leaving theirhomeworld heavily irradiated and uninhabitable.^[2]

Before their defeat at the hands of theFlood, and the firing of theHalo Array, the Forerunner fleet had "the capacity to force premature stellar collapse," creating an artificial supernova, used to destroy entire star systems taken by the Flood.^[3]

According to theSan'Shyuum, a supernova destroyed the species' homeworld,Janjur Qom, in648 BCE.^[4] However, many members of theCovenant doubted this claim.^[5]

During theBattle of Trove in2531, ProfessorEllen Anders came up with a plan to destroy theshield world and its fleet ofForerunnerSojourner-class dreadnoughts by taking the FTL reactor of theUNSCSpirit of Fire and detonating it inside the installation's internal star. This would cause the star to go supernova and obliterate the shield world.^[6] Due to damage sustained during an attack by Covenant forces, SergeantJohn Forge was forced to take the reactor into the star and detonate it manually. As theSpirit of Fire escaped the shield world, the internal star went supernova, destroying the planet and the Forerunner fleet, thwarting the Covenant plan.^[7][8] A debris field persisted until2557 when a massive UNSC fleet destroyed the debris with a massive bombardment ofnuclear weapons.^[9]

In2552, SpartanJohn-117 destroyed HaloInstallation 04 by detonating the fusion reactors of the crashedUNSCPillar of Autumn.^[10] The explosion created supernova-like temperatures and created a new element on theAlpha Shard, a fragment of the installation that was propelled throughslipspace to orbit a red giant. This new element was fatal to humans and was turned into abioweapon byterrorists. After the source of the new element was traced to Alpha Shard following theterrorist attack on Sedra City, PrivateTalitha Macer correctly surmised that the supernova effects of the destruction of Installation 04 created it, confirmed by the lack of the element anywhere else in the known universe.A joint mission by anONI-Sedran Colonial Guard team destroyed the deposits of this new element with aHAVOK tactical nuclear weapon.^[11]

At the close of theRequiem Campaign in2558, the leader ofa Covenant remnant,Jul 'Mdama, put the shield worldRequiem on a collision course with the system's sun,Epoloch. When the shield world was absorbed by the sun, the star went into a supernova state and exploded, nearly destroying theUNSCInfinity which narrowly escaped the shockwave into slipspace.^[12]

Trivia[edit]

• The destruction of twoForerunnershield worlds involved a supernova.Trove was destroyed when theUNSCSpirit of Fire's FTL reactor was used to cause the internal sun to go supernova while the destruction ofRequiem in its sunEpoloch caused Epoloch to go supernova.

List of appearances[edit]

• Halo 3
  • Terminals(First mentioned)
• Halo Wars(First appearance)
• Halo: Cryptum(Mentioned only)
• Halo 4
  • Spartan Ops
• Halo: Silentium(Mentioned only)
• Halo: Escalation
• Halo: Nightfall(Mentioned only)
• Halo: Smoke and Shadow(Mentioned only)
• Halo: Renegades(Referenced only)

Gallery[edit]

• 

  Animation of Supernova 1987a, showing the apex of the explosion, subsequent dissipation of the stellar remnant and buildup of ejecta within the debris ring. Note that this entire sequence takes place over a 15-year period.

Sources[edit]

• Astronomy
• Physics