Posted by raattgift 5 days ago
There are actually three rings, a smaller one around the previous star's equator, and two larger ones above and below. The hourglass-like figure is actually quite common, produced by the star rotaton.
https://www.astronomy.com/science/why-does-supernova-1987a-l...
It's a strangely romantic idea and one that is Clarke through and through!
I don't remember an Asimov one, but maybe he did one too; he wrote a whole lot of stories and I certainly haven't read all of them.
I probably read it three or four decades ago, along with others by those two authors and Heinlein as well. Easily confused, as I now live with a dog named Asimov!