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A supernova is an exploding star that can become billions of times as bright as the sun before gradually fading from view. At its maximum brightness, the exploded star may outshine an entire galaxy. The explosion throws a large cloud of dust and gas into space. The mass of the expelled material may exceed 10 times the mass of the sun.

Astronomers recognize two types of supernovae -- Type I and Type II. Type I supernovae probably occur in certain binary stars. A binary star is a pair of stars that are close together and orbit about each other. A Type I probably occurs in binaries in which one of the stars is a small, dense star called a white dwarf. If the two stars are close enough to each other, the gravitational pull of the white dwarf draws mass from the larger companion. When the white dwarf reaches a mass about 1.4 times that of the sun, it collapses and then explodes. 

This site explains what a supernova is and has links to other resources.

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