Hubble Telescope Watches Unique Nova Explosion Fire Cosmic 'Bullets' Through the Milky Way

Hubble Telescope Watches Unique Nova Explosion Fire Cosmic 'Bullets' Through the Milky Way

Astronomers have discovered that a stellar explosion in the Milky Way is blasting out cosmic bullets travelling at 20 million miles per hour. The cosmic explosion in question is V445 Puppis, which erupted in 2000 and is the only known 'helium nova' in our galaxy. The discovery was made using NASA's long-serving Hubble Space Telescope, which has been studying the explosion for two decades. The explosion is a rare type of stellar event known as a helium nova, which occurs when a star undergoes a sudden and violent explosion. The cosmic bullets being blasted out by the explosion are thought to be made up of hot gas and dust, and are travelling at incredible speeds.