A foe is a unit of energy equal to 1044 joules or 1051 ergs, used to measure the large amount of energy produced by a supernova.
The word is an acronym derived from the phrase fifty-one ergs. It was coined by Gerald Brown of Stony Brook University in his work with Hans Bethe, because "it came up often enough in our work". Scientists in the field are now renaming the unit Bethe, B, in honor of Hans Bethe.
This unit of measure is convenient because a supernova typically releases about one foe of observable energy in a very short period (which can be measured in seconds). In comparison, if the Sun had its current luminosity throughout its entire lifetime, it would produce 3.827×1026 W × 3.1536×107 s/yr × 1010 yr ≈ 1.2 foe.
Famous quotes containing the word foe:
“The earth yields up her stores, of every ill
The instigators; iron, foe to man,
And gold, than iron deadlier.”
—Ovid (Publius Ovidius Naso)