NASA’s Neisser X-ray Telescope, orbiting externally on the International Space Station (ISS), has observed dynamic processes on the surface of magnetars: patches of intense X-rays moving through the remnants of stars, merging in the process. Three such points can now be tracked using a telescope, like a research team in the journal “The Astrophysical Journal Letters” Writes.
NICER stands for Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer: The X-ray telescope should help us better understand the internal structure of neutron stars. These celestial bodies, which include magnetic stars, are highly active in the X-ray region of the electromagnetic spectrum. It is formed when a massive star at the end of its life collapses under the influence of its own gravity into a dense ball. A mass roughly corresponding to the mass of our Sun is compressed to about 20 kilometers, electrons and protons fuse to form neutrons. A structure is created whose density is so high that a teaspoon of it can weigh like an entire mountain on the ground.
Magnetic stars stand out among neutron stars because of their extremely strong magnetic field. In their publication, the group headed by George Younes of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, now tracks a special effect of this strong magnetic force: it is apparently able to “melt” the surface of a magnet in some cases. Places. The three spots recorded by NICER in X-ray light had formed at this point. They may return to rings similar to those on the surface of the Sun. These rings emit X-rays and appeared in NICER measurements as three separate ripples, repeating every 10.4 seconds – the period of the magnetar’s rotation.
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