BATON ROUGE - Once every 79 to 80 years, humans are treated to a view of an astronomical event that's set to happen again soon.

However, the event actually occurred around three thousand years ago. That's because it's around 3,000 light-years away, and the light from that event has taken that long to reach Earth, allowing astronomers to observe it as it was in the past.

It's a binary star system explosion, and scientists say it should be visible in the night sky soon.

The binary system is called T Coronae Borealis, which is around 3,000 light years away. Its last nova explosion was seen about 80 years ago, and the first recorded viewing of one may have happened all the way back in the early 13th century.

LSU Professor Brad Schaefer is among those standing by for another blast, but says it's difficult to predict the exact date it will happen. 

"It could go up tonight, it could go up next month, any month now, there you go," Schaefer said.

T Coronae Borealis is found in the Corona Borealis constellation, or "Northern Crown", a horseshoe-shaped curve of stars near the Hercules Constellation.

It's a star system containing two stars, a red giant and a white dwarf.

The binary of T Coronae Borealis is a close orbit between a normal red giant, spilling matter onto the white dwarf that it's going around.

"They're so close that matter from the big normal star falls onto the white dwarf, accumulates on the surface, and at some point, you'll accumulate enough matter that you have a thermonuclear runaway reaction. It's a hydrogen bomb," Schaefer said.

In simple terms, it goes boom.

"The gas is expanding away, providing the brightening of light, and that is what we see as a Nova," Schaefer said.

Schaefer says T Coronae Borealis is arguably the closest Nova to Earth. A nova is a star that suddenly increases its light output tremendously before returning to its original state.

Essentially, after the eruption, the cycle continues. Many people ask how something like that would even be possible and how the white dwarf wouldn't be destroyed entirely.

"The reason that the underlined star isn't destroyed is that it's an incredibly dense, well, white dwarf. So even having a hydrogen bomb on the surface of it, just eats off a little bit of the outer layer. White dwarfs are incredibly sturdy," Schaefer said.

Schaefer says the last time this event occurred was in 1946. It occurs every 79 to 80 years, meaning it will be either a once or twice-in-a-lifetime experience for people on Earth.

"In the case of T Core Bore, it's going to be at its peak brightness where you can easily see it with the unaided eye by stepping out in your backyard."

Schaefer does say it will only be about as bright as Polaris, which is nearly the 50th brightest star in the sky.

Astronomers around the world are watching it and will notify the world when it begins to rise, leading up to its explosion, and where to look.

Schaefer was also asked how the casual person would be able to view it. He said a pair of binoculars or any small telescope should pick it out. Viewers can look for it between the bright stars of Vega and Arcturus.