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Credit & Copyright: X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO/J. Hughes et al.,
Optical:
NASA/ESA/Hubble Heritage Team
(STScI
/AURA)
Explanation:
Where's the other star?
At the center of this supernova remnant should be the companion star to the star
that blew up.
Identifying this star is important for understanding just how
Type Ia supernova detonate, which in turn could lead to a better understanding
of why the brightness of
such explosions are so predictable, which in turn is key to calibrating the
entire
nature of our universe.
The trouble is that even a careful inspection of the center of
SNR 0509-67.5 has not found any star at all.
This indicates that the companion is intrinsically very faint -- much more faint
that many types of
bright giant stars that had been previous candidates.
In fact, the implication is that the
companion star might have to be a faint
white dwarf,
similar to -- but less massive than -- the star that detonated.
SNR 0509-67.5 is shown above in both visible light,
shining in red as imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope, and
X-ray light, shown in false-color green as imaged by the
Chandra X-ray Observatory.
Putting your cursor over the picture will highlight the central required
location for the missing companion star.
Discovery + Outreach:
Graduate student research position open for APOD
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: supernova remnant - binary star
Publications with words: supernova remnant - binary star
See also:
- APOD: 2025 January 8 Á Supernova Remnants Big and Small
- APOD: 2024 September 18 Á The Mermaid Nebula Supernova Remnant
- APOD: 2024 April 16 Á Filaments of the Vela Supernova Remnant
- APOD: 2024 April 3 Á Unusual Nebula Pa 30
- APOD: 2024 March 25 Á Sonified: The Jellyfish Nebula Supernova Remnant
- APOD: 2024 February 27 Á Supernova Remnant Simeis 147
- The Pencil Nebula Supernova Shock Wave