Aug 10, 2006

Mystery of the 1054 Supernova

One problem with evaluating cultural attitudes in the Middle Ages is that communication was so difficult that different cultures were much more varied and isolated from each other than we are today in our global village society. Even worldwide climatic events like the Little Ice Age had different effects on different climates, which elicited different responses from the local cultures.

Celestial (astronomical) events should be a different story. A star is a star, a comet is a comet and a supernova (that rarest of astronomical events) is a supernova. People all over the world might interpret such things in the sky differently, but the event itself would appear in the same way to everyone.

Well...not quite.

Take the two extremely rare supernovae that occurred during the 11th century. The most famous one, the 1054 Supernova, apparently resulted in what we now call the Crab Nebula in the zodiacal constellation Taurus. A supernova occurs when a star explodes, increasing suddenly in brightness from below visibility to so bright that some can be seen by daylight. A "guest star" was reported by Chinese and Japanese astronomers in the summer of 1054 and also appears in an 11th century pictograph from Chaco Canyon in northern Arizona, along with an apparent representation of the visit by Halley's Comet in 1066 that heralded a new era of rulers for the English. Another, more cryptic, pictograph from White Tank Mountain Regional Park, also in Arizona, appears to depict a Supernova of 1006 that appeared in the constellation Scorpius. The 1054 Supernova drawing is highly symbolic, depicting a solar symbol, flanked on the right by a crescent moon shape with the horns pointed down. Above the moon shape is a handprint. To the left and below the sun figure is a tadpole-shaped figure that may be a comet.

Yet, few western or Middle Eastern sources even mention the 1054 Supernova, though they did record the 1006 Supernova. How could our medieval ancestors in Europe have missed a celestial object that appeared "out of nowhere" and grew so bright that it was ten times brighter than Venus at its height, could be seen in daylight for 23 days and for two years by night?

Or did they? Find out in this week's article.