A once-in-a-lifetime nova in Earth’s sky. Here’s how you can spot it.

According to NASA officials, a rare nova explosion will soon be visible in Earth’s night sky.

The event, which could occur sometime between now and September, is generating a great deal of excitement in the astronomy community, as both professional and amateur astronomers will be able to observe the explosion.

“We’re definitely noticing a lot of excitement as skywatchers await the predicted nova,” Claire Andreoli, astrophysics communications manager at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, told Yahoo News. “It’s rare that we get the opportunity to observe something like this with our own eyes, which definitely adds to the excitement.”

🌟 What causes a star to become a nova?

T Coronae Borealis (T CrB), also called Blaze Star, is located 3,000 light-years from Earth and is a binary star system in the constellation Coronae Borealis (or “northern crown”).

In this binary star system, a white dwarf (a dead star) and an old red giant (a slowly dying star) are bound together by their gravity. About every 80 years, the hydrogen from the red giant fuses with the surface of the white dwarf, building up pressure and heat, resulting in a thermonuclear explosion – the system becomes a nova.

The last time a T-CrB nova was observed from Earth was in 1946.

💥 What is the difference between nova and supernova?

A nova is an astronomical event in which the brightness of a star suddenly and dramatically increases—sometimes to 100,000 times its normal value.

This causes a “new” star to appear in the night sky (“nova” is the Latin word for “new”), which slowly fades over the course of weeks or months.

A nova differs from a supernova in that in a nova a star flares up and then returns to a dormant state, whereas in a supernova the star is completely destroyed.

“T CrB is a once-in-a-lifetime event,” Dr. Rebekah Hounsell, an astrophysicist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, told Yahoo News. “This event will inspire a new generation of astronomers because anyone can participate in observing this amazing astronomical event.”

📍How to find T Coronae Borealis in the night sky

When T CrB goes nova, it will be visible to the naked eye for about a week.

To see it, first locate the constellation Hercules and then look to the west for the Northern Crown, a horseshoe-shaped arch of stars.

“[The Northern Crown] can be identified by locating the two brightest stars in the Northern Hemisphere – Arcturus and Vega – and drawing a straight line from one to the other, leading skywatchers to Hercules and the Corona Borealis,” NASA says on its website.

“This will be a fleeting event and may be difficult to detect,” Andreoli told Yahoo News.

“We’re really trying to manage expectations and give people as much information as possible so that hopefully they’ll be ready to experience this once-in-a-lifetime cosmic spectacle.”

💡This is the best way to observe the Nova

• Get rid of light pollution. Light pollution is scattered light from parking lots, sports facilities, streetlights and other human activities that manifests as a glow in the night sky. To see darker skies, move at least 20 to 30 miles from city limits, NASA advises.

• Check the weather forecast. Make sure it’s a clear, cloudless night with good visibility (little dust and humidity). Websites like Good to Stargaze can tell you whether or not the weather forecast for your location is favorable for stargazing.

• Use a constellation app or planisphere mapApps like Sky Guide use AR technology to turn your phone into a map to the stars, and those who prefer a more practical guide can use a planisphere to locate the constellation Hercules.