2026年2月16日
Unexplained Shocks Around a White Dwarf Star
Image Credit: ESO, K. Iłkiewicz & S. Scaringi et al.;
Text: Cecilia Chirenti (NASA GSFC, UMCP, CRESST II)
Explanation: How is RXJ0528+2838 creating such shock waves? A recently discovered white dwarf star, the farther left of the two largest white spots, RXJ0528+2838, was found 730 light-years away from Earth. Most stars, when done fusing nuclei in their cores for energy, become red giant stars, the cores of which live on as faint dense white dwarfs that slowly cool down for the rest of time. White dwarfs are so dense that the only thing that stops them from collapsing further is quantum mechanics. In about 5 billion years, our Sun will become a white dwarf, too. The featured image, obtained with the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope, shows unexplained bow shocks around RXJ0528+2838, similar to the bow wave of water around a fast-moving ship. Astronomers don’t yet know what is powering these shocks, which have existed for at least 1,000 years. The red, green and blue colors represent trace amounts of glowing hydrogen, nitrogen and oxygen gas.
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Tomorrow’s picture: passing comet
白矮星周围成因未明的激波
影像提供: ESO, K. Iłkiewicz & S. Scaringi et al.;
文稿: Cecilia Chirenti (NASA GSFC, UMCP, CRESST II)
说明: RXJ0528+2838是如何产生如此巨大的冲击波？最近发现的一颗白矮星，RXJ0528+2838，是图中两个最大白斑中较左边的那颗，距离地球约730光年。多数恒星在核心的核融合结束后，会膨胀为红巨星；其核心则会保持为致密而微弱的白矮星，在余后的宇宙时光中缓慢冷却。白矮星的密度极高，支撑其不再继续坍缩的唯一机制是量子力学中的简并压力。约再过50亿年，我们的太阳也将成为一颗白矮星。这张由欧洲南方天文台 甚大望远镜拍摄的精选影像显示了RXJ0528+2838周围出现成因未明的弓形震波，类似于高速航行船只周围的船首波。天文学家至今仍不清楚是什么机制驱动着这些至少存在了1000年的冲击波。影像中的红、绿、蓝三色分别标示微量发光的氢、氮与氧气体。
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明日的图片: passing comet
