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WOH G64
Context:
Scientists have successfully captured a detailed image of a star, WOH G64, in another galaxy, revealing it surrounded by an egg-shaped cocoon of gas and dust.
Key Highlights:
- The findings were described in the paper ‘Imaging the innermost circumstellar environment of the red supergiant WOH G64 in the Large Magellanic Cloud’, published in Astronomy and Astrophysics.
- The image was taken using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI) and its GRAVITY interferometer.
- Supernova and Collapse: Massive stars like WOH G64 can explode with the energy equivalent to the Sun’s entire 10 billion-year lifespan. Such stars exhaust their nuclear fuel, causing their cores to collapse.
- This can lead to either a supernova explosion, which creates heavy elements (e.g., zinc, silver, tin, gold, mercury, lead, and even uranium), or the formation of a black hole.
About WOH G64:
- Location: It is 160,000 light-years away in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a small galaxy that orbits the Milky Way.
- It is a red supergiant star, approximately 2,000 times the diameter of the Sun.
- Star’s Current Stage: The star has expelled its outer layer, surrounded by gas and dust in wreaths and arcs. This suggests it is nearing the end of its lifecycle.
Significance:
- This achievement marks a significant milestone in astronomy, demonstrating the capabilities of modern imaging technology.
- This observation is significant as it shows a star changing in a way that signals its imminent death, providing new insights into stellar evolution and death.
Future Implications:
- The success of capturing this image opens up new possibilities for studying stars in other galaxies and understanding the broader universe.
- It also highlights the importance of continued advancements in astronomical technology.
Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI)
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- It is an impressive astronomical instrument operated by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) at the Paranal Observatory in the Atacama Desert, Chile.
- It combines the light from up to four telescopes, either the four 8.2-meter Unit Telescopes or the four 1.8-meter Auxiliary Telescopes, to create a virtual telescope with much higher resolution.
- Key features:
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- High Angular Resolution: It can achieve milli-arcsecond resolution, allowing astronomers to observe extremely fine details in celestial objects.
- Infrared Capabilities: It operates in the near and mid-infrared wavelengths, making it suitable for studying objects obscured by dust.
- Versatile Instruments: The VLTI hosts several instruments like GRAVITY, MATISSE, and PIONIER, each designed for different observational needs.
- Scientific Research: It’s used to study a wide range of astronomical objects, including young stars, binary stars, exoplanets, and active galactic nuclei.
