Figure 12-5 RIVUXG Before and After Supernova 1987A Explosion A supernova was discovered in a nearby galaxy called the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) in 1987. This photograph shows part of the Tarantula Nebula, which is the host for SN 1987A. At its maximum brightness, people in the southern hemisphere saw the supernova without a telescope, even though it was 168,000 light-years away.