New research on a recently exploded star indicated that it underwent a "lopsided" blast, a feature that could help solve other supernova mysteries, according to a study published in the Science journal.

The explosion of the star called Supernova 1987A is characterized by a lopsided or asymmetrical blast, where the stellar core flew off in one direction and most of the debris in another.

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Using NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR), scientists were able to study the star, whose explosion was observed in 1987.

"Stars are spherical objects, but apparently the process by which they die causes their cores to be turbulent, boiling and sloshing around in the seconds before their demise," lead researcher and University of California in Berkeley's Steve Boggs said.

The sloshing of stellar cores is what causes asymmetrical explosions, Boggs added.

In addition, the team found more about titanium-44, a radioactive titanium, which is a product of a core-collapse supernova or type II star explosion.

For one, it is unstable. It also emits gamma rays at a certain energy level upon decay, when it also transform into calcium, Fiona Harrison of Caltech laboratory said.

The team also looked at Cassiopeia A's titanium-44 profile to track signs of lopsided explosions. Findings on this supernova, albeit not very definitive, supported their theory.

From the new observations, they gathered that lopsided explosions produce type II supernovae.

SN 1987A exploded in the nearby galaxy called Large Magellanic Cloud, which is 168,000 light-years away from Earth. The light from the supernova arrived on Earth and was detected in 1987. It has been studied since then.

The discovery also led astronomers to find neutrinos in other astronomical source aside from our sun.

TagsNASA, Supernova, Star, University of California, Steve Boggs, caltech, NuStar, Space