Astronomers have discovered a blinking star with waves the size of three suns
Miscellaneous / / August 12, 2023
The change in its brightness resembles the rhythm of the heart on an ECG.
Astronomers from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) have explained the anomalously powerful fluctuations in the brightness of the star MACHO 80.7443.1718, located in a binary system. The models showed that giant tidal waves should appear on it, which lead to an unusual effect.
Study this was published in the journal Nature Astronomy. In it, the cosmic body is called a “star with a heartbeat” - a periodic change in brightness leads to light curves that resemble the heart rhythm on an ECG. And this happens due to the rotation of two stars in elongated orbits, which at certain points leads to their convergence. As a result, mutual gravity distorts their shapes and changes the amount of visible light coming from them towards the Earth.
As a result, streams of matter rise from the giant star. They break into separate waves and crash back to the surface. Some of them reach a height of 4.3 million kilometers, which is comparable to three Suns. Together, they increase the equator by 50%.
In fact, this is not the only star with a "heartbeat". However, MACHO 80.7443.1718 can be called the most mysterious, since its brightness fluctuations are about 200 times greater than those of others.
The researchers are confident that the discovered star is not unique. They hope to find other systems with a similar pattern of behavior in order to trace how these effects affect the evolution of stars.
Read also🧐
- Astronomers first saw the apocalypse on another planet - it was swallowed up by a star
- Scientists have discovered a rare planet that can be completely covered by the ocean
- The James Webb telescope captured a dying star - this is waiting for the Sun