These stars explode in a massive fireball called a supernova.
大质量恒星死亡时会爆炸成一个巨型火球，叫做“超新星”。
Not every kind of star can explode as a supernova.
不是每一种恒星都会爆炸成“超新星”。
The sun can't for example.
太阳就不行，
It just lacks the oomph.
因为太阳的能量不够大。
It doesn't have the mass that you need to be able to get what happens in the core to make a star blow up.
太阳的质量不足以让其内核发生爆炸而成为“超新星”。
There are a handful of stars in the galaxy that are definitely capable of doing this.
但是银河系里有一大堆恒星绝对可以爆炸成“超新星”的。
Every star is carefully balanced between the inward pull of its gravity and the outward pressure of the heat it generates from nuclear fusion.
每个恒星都在小心的保持着其内部重力的牵引力和其核聚变产生的热张力之间的平衡。

When it runs out of fuel, the pressure needed for balance is gone Gravity now reigns supreme.
当恒星的能量耗尽，热张力消失重力就开始主导一切。
The star caves in and explodes.
恒星就会向内塌陷、爆炸。
The full fury of a supernova destroys the star and everything around it.
“超新星”爆炸的狂暴力量会毁灭它周围的一切，包括恒星。
If the star was near enough to Earth, a wave of deadly Gama and X-rays would flood toward us, it could knock out satellite communications and cause global power outages.
如果爆炸的“超新星”越地球不远，致命的伽马射线和X射线就会向我们席卷而来，使我们的卫星通讯中断，并让全球电力中断。
In fact, one such giant star has already exploded in our own galaxy,
实际上，已经有一颗巨型恒星在银河系爆炸过，
Hubble Space Telescope recorded an image of the aftermath.
哈勃记录下了爆炸后的景象。
The Crab Nebula is the expanding wreckage from a supernova that occurred in the year 1054.
蟹状星云就是“超新星”爆炸的受害者，那次爆炸发生在公元1054年。
The explosion of the supernova was recorded by Chinese astronomers, so we know exactly when the explosion was.
那次“超新星”爆炸被中国古代天文学家记录了下来，所以我们才能知道爆炸是在何时发生的。
The expanding debris from this thousand year-old supernova is still moving into space at about 5 million kilometers per hour,
那个有上千年历史的“超新星”爆炸的残留物至今还在以5百万公里/小时的速度向太空中飞散，
But the image is more than just a snapshot of ancient history.
不过哈勃的图像不光是远古历史的快照。
For scientists, the inter-connected web-like filaments offer a clue as to the nature of life itself.
对于科学家来说，这种相互关联、往复循环的结构也是生命的本质。
The basic elements needed to create life are formed in the heart of stars.
产生生命的基本元素也在恒星的中心部位产生了。
When the stars explode, these fundamental elements are scattered throughout the universe, seeding distant nebula clouds which give birth to new planets and new life.
当恒星爆炸时，这些基础元素会散落于宇宙之中，并在遥远的星云中播下产生新恒星和新生命的种子。