Supernova

A supernova was a celestial phenomenon involving the explosion of a star. The process resulted in the formation of a black hole, a dark body that possessed immense gravity. The Unknown Regions, known to their inhabitants as the Chaos, was hard to navigate as chained supernova explosions had occurred in the past that changed hyperlanes and made hyperspace travel in that area difficult. When going supernova, a star would burn the other celestial bodies in its vicinity to cinders. "Going supernova" was a common idiom for "exploding."