1. Have you heard that astronomers were able to spot a star going supernova within hours of the explosion? It’s also one of the closest to Earth in “a generation,” at 21 million light years away.

The supernova is in the Pinwheel Galaxy, located in the Big Dipper, and it’s gaining brightness by the minute (as massive stellar explosions tend to do); in about two weeks astronomers say it should be visible with a pair of binoculars.

Read more at the Berkley Science Center Lab or from the Bad Astronomer.

2. It’s been hot here, but I can’t bring myself to wish for the weather to break and fall to come. I need to go to the farmers market and the pool and pretend it will be summer forever.