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9/14/2026

Lightning Can Strike Twice! A second Type Ia Supernova in NGC 7331 in 14 months!

 


The unbarred spiral galaxy NGC 7331 in Pegasus—often referred to as "the Milky Way’s twin"—has offered observers a rare occurrence. Between July 2025 and September 2026, the galaxy hosted two consecutive Type Ia supernovae. 


Let me share that this is significantly rare. Extragalactic supernovae typically erupt once per galaxy every few centuries, making back-to-back "supernova siblings" within ~14 months in a single target a fascinating cosmic coincidence.


SN 2025rbs (Discovered July 14, 2025)

Classification: Type Ia

Discovery Team: Gravitational-wave Optical Transient Observer (GOTO) survey

Discovery Magnitude: m 17.0

Peak Magnitude: m 12.0 - 13.5

SN 2026aaiv 

Classification: Type Ia

Discovery Team: Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) survey

Discovery Magnitude: m 17.3

Peak/Current Magnitude: m 12.5-13.0






For my full article head over to Eadsy Astronomy at this LINK and to see images of last year's and this year's supernova there and my sketches of NGC 7331. 

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