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JWST Discovers Red Supergiant Star Before Supernova Blast

10/9/2025

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Summary

Story summary

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) identified red supergiant progenitor SN2025pht before its explosion in galaxy NGC 1637, 40 million light-years away.
The star emitted 100,000 times the Sun’s brightness, but appeared over 100 times dimmer due to surrounding dust.
Dust was carbon-rich, suggesting convection within the star; JWST infrared observations bridge theory and data, marking JWST’s first progenitor detection.

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Story summary

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) identified red supergiant progenitor SN2025pht before its explosion in galaxy NGC 1637, 40 million light-years away.
The star emitted 100,000 times the Sun’s brightness, but appeared over 100 times dimmer due to surrounding dust.
Dust was carbon-rich, suggesting convection within the star; JWST infrared observations bridge theory and data, marking JWST’s first progenitor detection.