A normally weak star of shine is drawing the attention of astronomers and observers of sky Because of an explosion that made it visible to the naked eye, especially in the southern hemisphere.
Known as “new”, the phenomenon made the celestial body increased its brightness suddenly and impressive, seeming to be, in fact, a new star in the night sky.
The term “new” refers to a stellar explosion of moderate intensity. Unlike a “supernova”, Which completely destroys the star, the new one allows the object to survive the event and even repeat the process in the future. Already a supernova is much more powerful and marks the final collapse of the star, which can give rise to a neutron star or a black hole.
The protagonist of the show is the V462 Lupi, located in the constellation of Lupus, the wolf. The event was first detected on June 12 by an international project called Wings-SN (acronym in English for something like “automated survey of supernovae in the full sky”), led by Ohio State University, USA.
Nova Lup 2025 (V462 Lupi) via @Telescopelivehq
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Obs. E. Guido; M. Rocchetto; A. VALVASORI#astronomy #NovaLup2025 #astronomy pic.twitter.com/ve4jpvo0u8
– Ernesto Guido (@comets77) June 22, 2025
Before the explosion, the magnitude of the star V462 Lupi was +22.3, which means that its brightness was too weak to observe without specialized equipment.
With the explosion, the shine of the star increased surprisingly. Remember that on the magnitude scale, the lower the number, the brighter the object. Stars with magnitude up to +6.5 can be seen with the naked eye in places with little luminous pollution.
Nova Lupi 2025 (= V462 Lupi) Imaged at About 03:45 UTC on the 19th. Discovered a few days ago, It’s probably around maximum light now. I esteited its visual magnitude at around +5.4. Low in the sky from this latitude, but not hard to find with binocular. pic.twitter.com/52fiad9kru
– Dr. John Barentine Fras (@johnbarentine) June 19, 2025
How a new
According to the website Space.comthe event classification as a new classic was confirmed by Yusuke Top, astronomer of the University of Cape Town in South Africa.
This type of explosion happens in binary systems, when a white dwarf – a very dense and compact star – consumes material from a neighboring star. Over time, accumulated matter warms even causing a nuclear fusion reaction on the surface of the white dwarf.
This reaction releases a huge amount of energy, making the star temporarily much brighter. Therefore, the new one can be observed even by those who do not use professional equipment. Two days after the discovery, members of the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO) reported that the V462 Lupi, with +7.9 magnitude, could already be seen with medium -sized binoculars.
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How to observe the explosion of the star V462 Lupi
According to the organization Sky & Telescopeover the days, the new continued to increase brightness, reaching +5.5 magnitude on Saturday (21) and becoming visible to the naked eye in places with dark sky. However, AAVSO’s latest data show that the star’s brightness has already begun to decrease, signaling the gradual end of the show.
Before V462 Lupi disappears again, anyone who wants to observe it should enjoy the next few days, especially during the New Moon phase. The ideal is to look for places away from the city’s lights and use a 10 × 50 binoculars, which offers a good field of view.
To find the new one, simply locate the region between the stars Delta Lupi and Kappa Centauri, in the Lupus constellation. The use of observation applications, as Stellarium, Star Walk or Sky Safari.
