T Coronae Borealis is a binary star and a recurrent nova about away in the constellation Corona Borealis. is its variable-star designation and the name most frequently used in the astronomical literature, but it also has the official proper name Blaze Star. The system was first observed in outburst in1866 by John Birmingham, but had been observed earlier in quiescence as a 10thmagnitude star. It may have been observed in1217 and in1787 as well. In February1946, the flare-up was discovered independently by three observers: the Soviet amateur astronomer A. S. Kamenchuk, the 15-year-old schoolboy Michael Woodman from Wales, and the British variable star observer N. F. H. Knight. This led to the theory that the star flares every 80years with the next nova expected to occur before 2027.

Nomenclature

T Coronae Borealis (abbreviated TCrB or unofficially T Cor Bor) but easily visible to the naked eye.

[[File:TCrBsketch.png|thumb|left|alt=diagram of a red giant star and smaller companion star which is accreting gas from its companion|Diagram of TCoronae Borealis based on a description given by Kraft By June2018, the star had dimmed slightly but still remained at an unusually high level of activity. By mid-2023, it had faded by0.35 magnitude or about 28%; its lowest brightness seen since2016. A similar dimming occurred in the year before the 1946outburst, leading some to predict an eruption before September2024. It has repeatedly been predicted to be imminent, but several predictions have lapsed as of and no such nova has yet been observed.

  • Mid‐February 2024 to end‐September2026 (made in March2023)
  • Beginning January 2024 to mid-August2024 (made in June2023) (lapsed)
  • January 2024 (made in August2023) (lapsed)
  • End of October2024 (made in June2024) (lapsed)
  • Around March27, 2025 (lapsed); November10, 2025 (lapsed); June25, 2026; or February8, 2027 (made in October2024)

Notes

References

Further reading

  • Blaze Star, The Worlds of David Darling
  • AAVSO: Check Recent Observations (get recent magnitude estimates for TCrB)