# SCP 06F6

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Astronomical object discovered in 2006

SCP 06F6 The sudden appearance of the transient "mystery object" SCP 06F6 in Hubble Space Telescope's field of view. The lower image quadrant represents a zoomed in view. Event type Supernova SNIc, SLSNIc Constellation Boötes Other designations SCP 06F6 Related media on Commons [edit on Wikidata]

**SCP 06F6** is (or was) an [astronomical object](/source/Astronomical_object) of unknown type, discovered on 21 February 2006 in the constellation [Boötes](/source/Bo%C3%B6tes)[1] during a survey of [galaxy cluster](/source/Galaxy_cluster) CL 1432.5+3332.8 with the [Hubble Space Telescope](/source/Hubble_Space_Telescope)'s [Advanced Camera for Surveys](/source/Advanced_Camera_for_Surveys) Wide Field Channel.[2]

According to research authored by Kyle Barbary of the [Supernova Cosmology Project](/source/Supernova_Cosmology_Project), the object brightened over a period of roughly 100 days, reaching a peak intensity of [magnitude](/source/Apparent_magnitude) 21; it then faded over a similar period.[2]

Barbary and colleagues report that the [spectrum](/source/Spectrum) of light emitted from the object does not match known [supernova](/source/Supernova) types, and is dissimilar to any known [phenomenon](/source/Phenomenon) in the [Sloan Digital Sky Survey](/source/Sloan_Digital_Sky_Survey) database. The light in the blue region shows broad line features, while the red region shows continuous emission.[3] The spectrum shows a handful of spectral lines, but when astronomers try to trace any one of them to an element the other lines fail to match up with any other known elements.[2]

Because of its uncommon spectrum, the team was not able to determine the distance to the object using standard [redshift](/source/Redshift) techniques; it is not even known whether the object is within or outside the [Milky Way](/source/Milky_Way_galaxy).[1] Furthermore, no Milky Way star or external galaxy has been detected at this location,[2] meaning any source is very faint.

The European X-ray satellite *[XMM Newton](/source/XMM_Newton)* made an observation in early August 2006 which appears to show an X-ray glow around SCP 06F6,[4] two orders of magnitude more luminous than that of supernovae.[5]

Observations from the [Palomar Transient Factory](/source/Palomar_Transient_Factory), reported in 2009, indicate a redshift *z* = 1.189 and a peak magnitude of −23.5 absolute (comparable to [SN2005ap](/source/SN2005ap)), making SCP 06F6 one of the most luminous transient phenomena known as of that date.[6]

## Possible causes

Supernovae reach their maximum brightness in only 20 days, and then take much longer to fade away. Researchers had initially conjectured that SCP 06F6 might be an extremely remote supernova; relativistic time dilation might have caused a 20-day event to stretch out over a period of 100 days. But this explanation now seems unlikely.[1] Other conjectures that have been advanced involve a collision between a [white dwarf](/source/White_dwarf) and an [asteroid](/source/Asteroid), or the collision of a white dwarf with a [black hole](/source/Black_hole).[7]

An analysis by a team from the [University of Warwick](/source/University_of_Warwick) (Boris Gänsicke et al.) suggests that the light spectrum is "consistent with emission from a cool, [carbon](/source/Carbon)-rich atmosphere at a [redshift](/source/Redshift) of z~0.14",[5] possibly representing the core collapse and explosion of a [carbon star](/source/Carbon_star).[4] Gänsicke's group concurs with Barbary and colleagues that SCP 06F6 may represent "a new class" of [celestial object](/source/Celestial_object).[2][5]

The analysis of Israeli astronomers of [Technion](/source/Technion_%E2%80%93_Israel_Institute_of_Technology) suggests four alternative explanations for SCP 06F6, in plausibility order: the tidal destruction of a carbon-oxygen [white dwarf](/source/White_dwarf) by an [intermediate-mass black hole](/source/Intermediate-mass_black_hole), a [Type Ia](/source/Type_Ia_supernova) [supernova](/source/Supernova) exploding inside the dense stellar wind of a [carbon star](/source/Carbon_star), an [asteroid](/source/Asteroid) that was swallowed up by a white dwarf or, least likely, a [core-collapse supernova](/source/Type_II_supernova).[8]

Observations in 2009 indicate that it may be a [pair-instability supernova](/source/Pair-instability_supernova).[6]

The event was similar to [SN 2005ap](/source/SN_2005ap), and other unusually bright supernova suggesting that it was a new type of supernova.[9]

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-ns_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-ns_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-ns_1-2) [Space 'firefly' resembles no known object](https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn14738-space-firefly-resembles-no-known-object.html), *New Scientist News*, 16 September 2008

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-barbary_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-barbary_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-barbary_2-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-barbary_2-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-barbary_2-4) Barbary et al.: [Discovery of an Unusual Optical Transient with the Hubble Space Telescope](https://arxiv.org/abs/0809.1648v1); accepted September 8, 2008, for later publication in the [Astrophysical Journal](/source/Astrophysical_Journal)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-ST_Mystery_Object_3-0)** [Mystery object spied with Hubble](http://www.spacetelescope.org/updates/html/update0811.html) The European Homepage for the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope November 2008 update

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-nature_4-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-nature_4-1) [How they wonder what you are](http://www.nature.com/news/2008/080919/full/news.2008.1122.html), *Nature News*, 19 September 2008

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-gans_5-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-gans_5-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-gans_5-2) Gänsicke et al.: [SCP06F6: A carbon-rich extragalactic transient at redshift z~0.14](https://arxiv.org/abs/0809.2562). Preprint, 2008.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Quimby_6-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Quimby_6-1) Quimby; Kulkarni; [Kasliwal](/source/Mansi_Kasliwal); Gal-Yam; Arcavi; Sullivan; Nugent; Thomas; Howell (2009). "Mysterious transients unmasked as the bright blue death throes of massive stars". [arXiv](/source/ArXiv_(identifier)):[0910.0059v1](https://arxiv.org/abs/0910.0059v1) [[astro-ph.CO](https://arxiv.org/archive/astro-ph.CO)].

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** [Star Light, Star Bright, Its Explanation Is Out Of Sight](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090107175009.htm), *Science Daily*, 8 January 2009

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** ["Galactic vs. Extragalactic Origin of the Peculiar Transient SCP 06F6"](https://arxiv.org/abs/0812.1402) Noam Soker, Adam Frankowski, Amit Kashi (Technion, Israel)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** Quimby, R. M.; Kulkarni; [Kasliwal](/source/Mansi_Kasliwal); Gal-Yam; et al. (June 8, 2011). "Hydrogen-poor superluminous stellar explosions". *[Nature](/source/Nature_(journal))*. **474** (7352): 487–489. [arXiv](/source/ArXiv_(identifier)):[0910.0059](https://arxiv.org/abs/0910.0059). [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[2011Natur.474..487Q](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2011Natur.474..487Q). [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1038/nature10095](https://doi.org/10.1038%2Fnature10095). [PMID](/source/PMID_(identifier)) [21654747](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21654747). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [4333823](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:4333823).

## External links

- [CBET 546](http://www.cbat.eps.harvard.edu/cbet/000500/CBET000546.txt)

- [New Scientist's article from June 2006 when the object was first observed](https://www.newscientist.com/channel/astronomy/dn9360-enigmatic-object-baffles-supernova-team.html)

- [New Scientist's article from September 2008](https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn14738-space-firefly-resembles-no-known-object.html)

- [New Sci June 2009](https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn17262)

- [Astrophysical Journal: Boris T. Gänsicke et al, *SCP 06F6: A CARBON-RICH EXTRAGALACTIC TRANSIENT AT REDSHIFT z ~ 0.14*. May, 2009](http://www.iop.org/EJ/abstract/1538-4357/697/2/L129)

v t e Constellation of Boötes Boötes in Chinese astronomy Boötes Void List of stars in Boötes Stars Bayer α (Arcturus) β (Nekkar) γ (Seginus) δ (Qigong) ε (Izar, Pulcherrima) ζ η (Muphrid) θ ι κ λ (Xuange) μ1 (Alkalurops) μ2 ν1 ν2 ξ ο π ρ (Kalasungsang) σ (Genghe) τ (Tepiamenit) υ φ χ ψ ω Flamsteed 1 2 3 6 (e) 7 9 10 11 12 (d) 13 14 15 18 20 22 (f) 24 (g) 26 31 32 33 34 (Alrumh) 38 (Merga) 39 40 44 (Quadrans) 45 (c) 46 (b) 47 (k) 50 Variable R S T RX ZZ AB BL BP BX BY CE CH CI CN CP CR CX CY (101 Vir) DE EK HN HP HD 118508 118889 122563 125040 125351 (A) 125658 126128 126129 126141 126200 126271 127304 127334 127726 128093 128198 129132 129357 130084 130603 130917 131040 131473 131496 (Arcalís) 132029 132406 132563 134064 134335 135438 135530 135944 141399 Other 2MASS J15031961+2525196 CFBDSIR 1458+10 Gliese 526 HAT-P-4 LHS 2924 PSR J1544+4937 SDSS J1416+1348 SDSS J1433+1011 TVLM 513-46546 WASP-14 WD 1425+540 ZTF J153932.16+502738.8 Exoplanets HAT-P-4b HD 128311 b c HD 132406 b HD 136418 b (Awasis) τ Boötis b TOI-1853 b WASP-14b Star clusters NGC 5466 Galaxies NGC 5008 5248 5251 5416 5490 5500 5504 5508 5514 5523 5529 5532 5533 5535 5539 5541 5544 5545 5548 5557 5559 5562 5579 5582 5591 5601 5603 5609 5613 5614 5615 5624 5629 5630 5641 5642 5653 5665 5676 5681 5682 5683 5698 5714 5722 5752 5753 5754 5755 5772 5778 5784 5790 5820 5821 5829 5837 5857 5875 5876 5886 5888 5896 5929 5930 5966 Numbered I II III Other 3C 295 3C 299 3C 300 3C 303 3C 315 4C 19.44 4C +26.42 7C 1354+2552 Abell 2009 BCG Arp 302 B2 1420+32 B2 1441+26 CEERS-2112 CEERS-93316 CEERS2-588 CLASS B1359+154 Cloverleaf quasar DDO 190 EGS-zs8-1 EGS-z11-R0 EGSY8p7 H1426+428 IC 4397 IC 4461 IC 4462 IC 4481 IC 4516 IRAS 13349+2438 IRAS 14394+5332 IRAS 15206+3342 LEDA 2108986 MACS 1423-z7p64 MACS J1447.4+0827 BCG Maisie's Galaxy Markarian 463 Markarian 471 Markarian 478 MS 1455.0+2232 BCG MS 1512-cB58 NVSS J141343+433945 OQ 172 OQ 530 PG 1411+442 PG 1543+489 PGC 93125 PGC 1470080 PKS 1345+125 PKS 1413+135 QSO B1422+202 RBS 1467 RGZ J145001.5+144747 RGZ J145039.8+441829 SBS 1415+437 SDSS J135646.10+102609.0 SDSS J1430+2303 Teacup galaxy UGC 8669 UGC 9128 UGC 9425 UGC 9684 UGC 9796 ULAS J1342+0928 VV 191 Galaxy clusters Abell 1795 Abell 1991 BoRG-58 IDCS J1426.5+3508 Astronomical events GRB 990123 GRB 080319B SCP 06F6 SN 2003fg SN 2005bc SN 2020tlf Category

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [SCP 06F6](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SCP_06F6) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SCP_06F6?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.