Saturday, August 9, 2025
HomeTechnologyThe Hubble space telescope revisits a galaxy with a mysterious "zombie" star!

The Hubble space telescope revisits a galaxy with a mysterious “zombie” star!

Similarly,

Hubble space telescope revisits galaxy:

It is hard to believe it but 35 years after its orbit. In addition, the Hubble space telescope is always operational and it continues to offer us sumptuous images of the famous “Kingdom of the Nebulae” to use the title of a famous work of theastronomerastronomer United States Edwin HubbleEdwin Hubble whose name was given to the telescope.

Recall that it is this same astronomer who in the 1920s. Therefore, in parallel with the quantum revolution launched by Louis de BroglieLouis de BroglieWerner Heisenberg, Erwin SchrödingerErwin Schrödinger et Max BornMax Bornwill confirm the thesis sustained in 1755 by the philosopher Emmanuel Kant: certain nebulae were “universes-island”, that is to say autonomous stars systems, such as our hubble space telescope revisits galaxy GalaxyGalaxy.

A galaxy rich in supernovae – Hubble space telescope revisits galaxy

Today. In addition, the NasaNasa and theESAESA honor NGCNGC 1309, a Galaxy spiralGalaxy spiral located in the constellationconstellation of the Eridan. In addition, She was discovered by the German-British astronomer William HerschelWilliam Herschel in 1786. Therefore, well known for two other discoveries, nothing less than that ofUranusUranus and radiation infraredinfrared.

William Herschel could not know that NGC 1309 is around 100 millionlight yearslight years. Similarly, of the Milky WayMilky Waybut there is no doubt that it would have been amazed hubble space telescope revisits galaxy by the photographyphotography De Hubble also showing hundreds of distant galaxies in the background. Nevertheless, The only exception to this extragalactic set is a star located near the top of the image. However, identified by its peaks of diffractiondiffractionas explained by the NASA press release which specifies that this star is only a few thousand light years from the Solar systemSolar system.

Documentary extract From Big Bang to living (ECP Productions, 2010). Consequently, Jean-Pierre Luminet talks about the evolution of solar type stars, their transformation into red giants, then into white dwarfs. Furthermore, © Jean-Pierre Luminet

This same press release also explains that Hubble’s gaze has already focused on NGC 1309 several times. Consequently, It happened in particular because since the early 2000s. In addition, no less than two explosions of supernovaesupernovae In this galaxy, which is remarkable compared to our Milky Way which is much less, even if we expect to observe one in around 2050.

In the case of NGC 1309, there was thus SNSN 2002FK in 2002 and SN 2012z in 2012. Furthermore, SN 2002FK was a perfect example of IA type supernova. which occurs when a Woman BlancheWoman Blanche (or even two) explodes for several possible reasons.

But. in the case of SN 2012z, detected as part of the research program Lick Observatory Supernova SearchTHE astrophysicistsastrophysicists were faced with the existence of a new type of thermonuclear supernova, a variant of SN IA type supernova produced with white dwarfs and which are called SN IAX. Less powerful than their cousins. but more than the simple newnewthey do not lead to the destruction of their starry star and it is a surprise that blurs our understanding of the supernovae with white dwarfs.

Did you know?

Let’s take up some explanations already given by Futura In a previous article concerning what has been called for several centuries for Tycho Brahe. Johannes Kepler, famous builders of the sky, “new stars”, abbreviated by the abbreviatedness new, from Latin Stella Nova which means “new star”. But it was not until the 1930s. the work of Walter Baad and Fritz Zwicky to realize the existing differences between the Novae and the Supernovae. Quickly were also discovered the first Supernovae subclasses today famous. SN I and SN IIs, according to the famous classification designed by the German-American astronomer Rudolph Minkowski and the Swiss astronomer Fritz Zwickky.

SN hubble space telescope revisits galaxy AIs are thermonuclear explosions of white dwarfs in binary systems. while the SN II, much more powerful, are explosions produced by much heavier stars than the sun and which collapse gravitally by giving neutron stars, or black holes if they are quite massive. In any case. the differences between supernovae (others were going to be highlighted to the present day), are at the spectrum reflecting the presence of certain elements in the light of the explosions and in the variations and durations of the light intensities (the light curves) of these stellar cataclysms.

Thus. type I supernovae have a spectrum that does not contain hydrogen while type II supernovae have a spectrum that contains it. Among type I supernovae. there are three subclasses, so that if the spectrum shows the presence of silicon, we speak of type IA, but if the spectrum does not show, we look at the abundance of hubble space telescope revisits galaxy helium. In the presence of a notable quantity of HE. we speak of the IB type and vice versa, in the presence of small quantity of helium, we speak of the IC type.

We have just introduced the SN IAX type in recent years.

Hubble space telescope revisits galaxy

A Supernovae Zoo

The classic model for an SN IA was as follows. It all starts in a binary systembinary system where a slightly more massive star than the other. but not exceeding 8 to 10 massesmasses solar, evolves more quickly by first becoming a Woman RougeWoman Rouge. This leads her to lose mass with ventsvents violent. to end up leaving a stellar corpse in the form of a white dwarf containing less than 1.44 times the mass of SoleilSoleilthe famous Lots they ChandrasekharLots they Chandrasekhar.

If the two stars are close enough to each other when the second in turn becomes a giant redgiant redTHE tidal forcestidal forces gravitational from the first to tear him from the mass. A form one accretion diskaccretion disk Around the white dwarf which sees its mass increase by swallowing. to form its outer layers, of thehydrogenhydrogen andhéliumhélium While his heart contains a lot of carbonecarbone and ofoxygenoxygen.

A series of thermonuclear reactions switched by getting carried away when the mass of the white dwarf reaches 1.44 times that of the sun. hubble space telescope revisits galaxy a thermonuclear explosion then occurs, completely destroying the white dwarf and leaving a rest of supernovarest of supernovaas we can see in the animation of the video below.

An animation showing the standard model for a SN AI, see the explanations above. © Caastro

A zombie star produced by a SN IAX

Surprisingly in the case of SN 2012z. not only did the white dwarf survived an explosion in supernova mode, but it has become more brilliant, as shown in the medallion to the right of the photo below, which suggests an increase in size. We described this phenomenon by speaking of star “zombie”. since it has somehow returned to life, while fundamentally remaining the corpse of a star once on the main sequencemain sequence.

An IAX type supernova is less brilliant. its light curve evolves more slowly, which suggested nuclear hubble space telescope revisits galaxy astrophysicists than SN 2012z was somehow a failed supernova, whose details of thermonuclear reactions behind the explosion are still misunderstood.

It is really disturbing and. for the moment, this defies the previous models of SN IA, because in the case of SN 2012z, the explosion occurred well with a geniror star, which we were able to identify on archive images of Hubble and whose mass was close to that of Chandrasekhar. Better still, it was the first time that we identified the white dwarf generator of a supernova.

Further reading: Up to 55% discount on the iPhone 16 Pro: Applicating Apple quality has never been so affordableLook, Hubble captures the interstellar comet 3i/atlas that visits usThe summer of designers: the holidays of Mathieu Lehanneur, creator of the Olympic basinLa Tour-de-Peilz: an off-control bus strikes vehiclesChatgpt in front of this baccalaureate test: an unexpected performance that upsets expectations and sows dismay among artificial intelligence experts.

skylar.dean
skylar.dean
Skylar fact-checks viral wellness crazes, rating each trend with a “spa-day or nay” thermometer.
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
RELATED ARTICLES

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

- Advertisment -

Most Popular

Recent Comments