[yitchelle]

Surely these are occurring very frequently as there are trillions of stars out there. I imagine that space is so vast that the vastness makes these events difficult to observe. Am I wrong with this thought?

[NohatCoder]

It is only 2600 light years away. Our galaxy is a little under 100000 light years across, depending on how you measure. So it is a rare type of double star, and it is very close to Earth, the combination is what makes it special.

[widforss]

> This recurring nova is only one of five in our galaxy.

[SiempreViernes]

Just like how you can't see much of your body (without mirrors) because your body is in the way, we can't see much of the galaxy because there's galaxy in the way.

[kugelblitz]

> This could be a once-in-a-lifetime viewing opportunity as the nova ouburst [sic] only occurs about every 80 years.