The universe rarely gives us a chance to watch a star go nova in some predictable pattern. But this year, we may get one—if the predictions are right.
T Coronae Borealis, also known as the Blaze Star, is predicted to erupt into a spectacular nova sometime in 2025. For astrophotographers, astronomers, or even if you just enjoy the night sky – this is an event to check out.
As I prepare my gear, I’m inviting you to follow along as I capture the before—and later, the after—of this once-in-a-generation outburst.
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The Gear: Tools for a Star’s Farewell
I’ll be photographing the Blaze Star using my astromodified Canon R5 and Canon R6 paired with at least two IRIX EF lenses to frame up the range of sizes and the perspective of the event including a close-up of Corona Borealis and a broad view to include the Milky Way. I also intend to image the area with dedicated astrophotography cameras and telescopes.
- IRIX 150mm f/2.8 Macro
Perfect for isolating the Corona Borealis constellation with a full frame camera and surrounding star field. I’ll be using this on a star tracker to pull deep sky detail by allowing longer exposures and probably use a light pollution filter. Unless you are an expert navigating the night sky a goto mount will reduce your frustration. Images to be uploaded with future posts. -
Skysafari 7 image showing various combinations of cameras and lenses to prepare for the upcoming nova - IRIX 45mm f/1.4
Perfect for a more perspective around the blaze star, a 45mm cameral paired with a full frame camera makes it relatively simple to point in the right area of the sky and not fight hunting for a small spot in the sky if you have some light pollution. Imagine sites like Astometry.net are fantastic ways to annotate your image and identify the structures in the image. - The sky unexpectedly went from cloudy for the next ten days to clear – so I took the opportunity to get to the lake and try some Milky Way Photography (separate post) but also take a few images with the 45mm lens. 20 images of 30 seconds at F/1.4 and ISO 400 using an H-alpha cut drop-in filter from Kolari with guiding provided by the Ioptron Skyguider Pro made quick work of a near field image of the Blaze Star and local community of space. Prepped in Lightroom Classic (LRC) by updating the white balance, lens correction, and converted to tiff files; stacked in Astropixel Processor, final edits in LRC to make it be able to be uploaded to Ulysses (it has specific size constraints). Review of the star map analytics in Astropixel Processor showed good roundness to the stars even at F/1.4.
- Various wide-field and moderate field lenses to show case the upcoming perspective of the blaze star in nova.
- Various wide-field and moderate field lenses to show case the upcoming perspective of the blaze star in nova.
Perfect for a more perspective around the blaze star, a 11, 15, or 21mm lens offers the ability to pull in other amazing structures, like the Milky Way or landscape items. At 4 am on May 23rd however, the Blaze Star was way high in the sky.
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In addition to lenses I will be using several different mounts including the MSM Nomad, Ioptron Skyguider Pro and some larger mounts from Meade (LX85) and ZWO (AM5, AM3).
Why It Matters
The Blaze Star last erupted in 1946, and before that in 1866. This binary system—a red giant and a white dwarf—builds pressure over decades until it detonates in a thermonuclear nova. This isn’t a supernova, but the explosion will be visible to the naked eye, likely reaching magnitude 2 or brighter.
Photographing the star and surrounding environment prior to the event will provide a great reference for the changes that happened a thousand years ago- the quiet before the storm.
In May 2023, I captured the dramatic SN 2023ixf supernova event in M101, the Pinwheel Galaxy. The supernova burst onto the scene in one of the most photogenic spiral galaxies in the night sky—bright enough for amateur gear to catch. I got the shot, and the images remain some of my favorite deep sky captures.
But I hadn’t imaged M101 before the explosion. I want to prepare better this time! I will upload images of that effort for reference in a future post.
These images stand as a reminder: most stellar cataclysms arrive unannounced—but the Blaze Star is giving us a heads-up.
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Capturing the “Before” Phase
- With the upcoming new moon and maybe a few hours of clear skies I hope to be able to get to the lake and get some wide field and close up images of the Blaze Star and post those along with additional information on gear and preparation for the event. I also will make sure to prioritize it for some at home photography with larger mounts.
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What’s Coming Next
Once the nova triggers, I’ll be ready to shoot a burst sequence of stills and time-lapse clips using both IRIX lenses. The goal is to create:
- A side-by-side comparison of before/after imagery
- A printable image of the Blaze Star region
- A YouTube video documentary showing the full imaging and processing workflow
Follow updates at:
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Join Me Under the Stars
Whether you’re a seasoned astrophotographer or just beginning your journey, I invite you to follow along and prepare your own gear for the coming nova. I’ll post tips, settings, and updates in real-time as the Blaze Star approaches detonation.
This is your chance to capture a moment older than humanity—then watch it explode.
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— Samuel E. Glover
Photography and Astrophotography | Scientist |
www.sameglover.com
