From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishnovano‧va /ˈnəʊvə $ ˈnoʊ-/ noun (plural novas or novae /-viː/) [countable] HAa star which explodes and suddenly becomes much brighter for a short time → supernova
Examples from the Corpus
nova• Apparently a nova is a close binary system, made up of a cool, normal star and a White Dwarf.• Pool will use the outer planets to create the illusion of a nova.• I have heard congregations sing to the beat of salsa, bossa nova, country western, and a dozen other tempos.• Here, attempts to bossa nova merely produced a self-conscious lateral sway.• But before Rainbow can reply, a star goes nova on her near-side window, courtesy of a broken brick.• They can not be predicted, and amateurs have a fine record in nova hunting.• The only object of interest is the recurrent nova T Pyxidis.Origin nova (1800-1900) Latin “new” 