nova

Any sudden brightening of a previously inconspicuous star.

• In these stellar pairings, if the two stars are close together, the white dwarf will siphon mass away from its companion and have an outburst called a nova. And when the white dwarf accumulates too much mass, it will collapse and explode in

Ellipsis of classical novaabbreviationalt-ofellipsis

plural of novumform-ofplural