A student at Harvard University has stumbled across the terrifying spectacle of a star in our galactic backyard that is on the brink of exploding in a supernova. It is so close that if it were to blow up before moving away from us, it could wipe out life on Earth.

A small, ailing star in the Earth's backyard may explode into a supernova millions of years from now, with the potential to destroy all life on our planet.

Shooting out jets of energy or blobs of stuff the size of Earth at nearly light-speed, exploding stars called supernovae may hold more potential peril than anyone had ever imagined, according to a growing suspicion among some researchers.

How astrophysicists have finally learned to exploit high-powered lasers and searing plasma in a laboratory setting to simulate the most violent features in the heavens, including the blast waves that radiate from supernova explosions and the birth wails of newborn stars.