The oldest historical supernova (SN), recorded by ancient Chinese in 14th Century B.C. on pieces of tortoise shells or bones, is identified with the aid of modern space γ-ray observations. Hard X-rays with energy up to 20 keV were observed from IC 443 by the X-ray satellite Ginga. We infer from these observations the age of IC 443 is ∼ 1000 – 1400 yrs. The result supports the hypothesis that IC 443 is the remnant of the historical SN 837 that occurred during the Tang Dynasty.

The association between the supernova remnant (SNR) CTB 80 and SN 1408 has been hotly debated for about ten years and is briefly reviewed and discussed here. A new picture is presented to explain this association.

High energy emission from historical SNRs can persist in a multiphase interstellar medium (ISM). As a result, the study of the relationship between SNRs and ancient guest stars has gained new vitality.

The First Supernova Observed by Mankind

SN 1987A, the first supernova observed by the naked eye in nearly 400 years, stimulates a high tide in supernova research. It also tempts us to ask: what is the earliest supernova recorded by mankind? Recently, we have discussed this topic in a few articles (Wang 1987 a,b; Xu, Wang & Qu 1992). The earliest supernova recorded by mankind is the great new star that occurred in 14th century B.C. recorded by the ancient Chinese on a piece of Tortoise shell or bone in Yin-Shang Dynasty (Fig. 1).