Astronomers recently caught sight of a rare spectacle: a type 1A supernova magnified upwards of 50 times and split into four images in the sky.
The occurrence was thanks to gravitational lensing, or the distribution of matter between an observer and a distant light source. This phenomenon was first predicted in Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity.
Type 1A supernovas shine at a steady brightness and can be used to determine distance across the universe. The recent event was made possible when the galaxy was perfectly aligned to bring the four streams of light from the supernova into Earth’s view. Studying the discovery and the differences among each of the four images could help scientists better understand dark matter and the universe’s expansion rate.