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Astronomers might lastly have actually settled the concern of what is triggering extremely energetic X-rays from WD 2226-210, a white dwarf star situated at the center of the Helix Nebula.
This artist’s impression reveals an exoplanet (left) that has actually approached too near a white dwarf (right) and been torn apart by tidal forces from the star. Image credit: NASA/ CXC/ SAO/ M. Weiss.
The Helix Nebula is a so-called planetary nebula, which is the late phase of a star that has actually ejected its external layers of gas and left what is called a white dwarf.
In previous years, the Einstein X-ray Observatory and ROSAT telescopes found extremely energetic X-rays originating from Helix Nebula’s white dwarf, WD 2226-210.
White overshadows like WD 2226-210, which lies just 650 light-years away, do not normally release strong X-rays.
“We believe this X-ray signal might be from planetary particles pulled onto the white dwarf,” stated Dr. Sandino Estrada-Dorado, an astronomer at the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
“We may have lastly discovered the reason for a secret that’s lasted over 40 years.”
Formerly astronomers figured out that a Neptune-sized world remains in a really close orbit around WD 2226-210– finishing one transformation in less than 3 days.
Dr. Estrada-Dorado and associates conclude that there might have been a world like Jupiter even better to the star.
The besieged world might have at first been a significant range from the white dwarf however then moved inwards by connecting with the gravity of other worlds in the system.
Once it approached close sufficient to the white dwarf, the gravity of the star would have partly or entirely torn the world apart.
“The mystical signal we’ve been seeing might be brought on by the particles from the shattered world falling onto the white dwarf’s surface area, and being heated up to radiance in X-rays,” stated Dr. Martin Guerrero, an astronomer at the Institute of Astrophysics of Andalusia.
“If verified, this would be the very first case of a world seen to be ruined by the main star in a planetary nebula.”
WD 2226-210 lives in the center of the Helix Nebula. Image credit: NASA/ CXC/ SAO/ Univ Mexico/ Estrada-Dorado et al/ JPL/ ESA/ STScI/ M. Meixner/ NRAO/ T.A. Rector/ ESO/ VISTA/ J. Emerson/ K. Arcand.
The research study reveals that the X-ray signal from the white dwarf has actually stayed roughly continuous in brightness in between 1992, 1999, and 2002– with observations by ROSAT, NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, and ESA’s XMM-Newton X-ray observatory, respectively.
The information, nevertheless, recommend there might be a subtle, routine modification in the X-ray signal every 2.9 hours, offering proof for the remains of a world incredibly near to the white dwarf.
The authors likewise thought about whether a star with a low mass might have been ruined, instead of a world.
Such stars have to do with the very same size as a Jupiter-like world however are more huge, making them much less most likely to have actually been torn apart by the white dwarf.
WD 2226-210 has some resemblances in X-ray habits to 2 other white overshadows that are not inside planetary nebulas.
One is perhaps pulling product far from a world buddy, however in a more sedate style without the world being rapidly ruined.
The other white dwarf is most likely dragging product from the vestiges of a world onto its surface area.
These 3 white overshadows might make up a brand-new class of variable, or altering, things.
“It’s crucial to discover more of these systems due to the fact that they can teach us about the survival or damage of worlds around stars like the Sun as they get in aging,” stated Dr. Jesús Toala, an astronomer at the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
The group’s paper will be released in the Regular monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
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S. Estrada-Dorado et al2025. Accretion onto WD 2226-210, the main star of the Helix Nebula. MNRASin press; arXiv: 2412.07863
This short article is a variation of a press-release supplied by NASA.
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