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AVAO
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by AVAO » Sat Aug 17, 2024 9:40 am
MeerKAT: Garden-sprinkler-like jet spotted shooting out of neutron star Circinus X-1
phys.org | 2024 July 16
A strange 'garden sprinkler-like' jet coming from a neutron star has been pictured for the first time. The S-shaped structure is created as the jet changes direction due to the wobbling of the disk of hot gas around the star—a process called precession, which has been observed with black holes but, until now, never with neutron stars. This particular object sits in the binary system Circinus X-1. It is so dense that a teaspoon of its material weighs as much as Mount Everest.
The picture ... include
the first-ever image of an S-shaped jet coming from a confirmed neutron star — a breakthrough that could help unravel the extreme physics behind the astronomical phenomenon.
Lead researcher Fraser Cowie said there was another system known for its S-shaped jets, called SS433, but recent results suggest that object is likely a black hole. "This image is the first time we have seen strong evidence for a precessing jet from a confirmed neutron star," he said.
"This evidence comes from both the symmetric S shape of the radio-emitting plasma in the jets and from the fast, wide shockwave, which can only be produced by a jet changing direction.
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TY4YA Jac
Last edited by
AVAO on Sat Aug 17, 2024 9:55 am, edited 1 time in total.
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AVAO
- Commander
- Posts: 787
- Joined: Tue May 28, 2019 12:24 pm
- AKA: multiwavelength traveller
- Location: Zurich, Switzerland
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by AVAO » Sat Aug 17, 2024 9:53 am
MeerKAT: Garden-sprinkler-like jet spotted shooting out of neutron star Circinus X-1
phys.org | 2024 July 16
Credit: CSIRO/ATNF/ATCA (Radio)
The composite image shows the X-rays in blue and radio emission in purple, which have been overlaid on an optical field of view from the Digitized Sky Survey.
Image credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison/S. Heinz et al; Optical: DSS; Radio: CSIRO/ATNF/ATCA
X-ray light rings from a neutron star in Circinus X-1
Credit: NASA/ESA (CHANDRA / X-Ray)
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AVAO
- Commander
- Posts: 787
- Joined: Tue May 28, 2019 12:24 pm
- AKA: multiwavelength traveller
- Location: Zurich, Switzerland
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by AVAO » Sun Aug 18, 2024 9:26 pm
AVAO wrote: ↑Sat Aug 17, 2024 9:53 am
MeerKAT: Garden-sprinkler-like jet spotted shooting out of neutron star Circinus X-1
phys.org | 2024 July 16
jac berne (flickr)
Compare with NGC 5189 (nicknamed Spiral Planetary Nebula) with a similar morphology but in the optical range.
But NGC 5189 is a planetary nebula and not a neutron star like Circinus X-1.
Credit: International Gemini Observatory
