Overview
- The peer-reviewed analysis of SN 2024ggi was published November 12 in Science Advances by an international team led by Yi Yang.
- ESO’s VLT used the FORS2 instrument to measure polarized light, the key to inferring 3D structure at otherwise unresolvable scales.
- The initial ejecta resembled an olive and later flattened as it expanded, while the symmetry axis stayed fixed.
- The explosion occurred in galaxy NGC 3621 about 22 million light-years away and likely came from a red supergiant of roughly 12–15 solar masses and ~500 solar radii.
- A rapid observing request about 12 hours after detection enabled VLT observations the next day, demonstrating the value of fast, coordinated follow-up.