through mostly serendipitous discoveries, it becomes apparent that type i supernovae should be divided into at least 2 and even probably 3 distinct types of objects. those that showed a strong silicon absorption feature at maximum light were reclassified as type ia supernovae, those without the silicon absorption but which displayed helium absorption were called type ib supernovae, and those that did not show wither silicon or helium were dubbed type ic supernovae. these supernova classifications are still used by astronomers today to type all newly discovered supernovae.