Astronomers spotted the aftermath from the forceful collision of two ice giants. The collision created a new, much more massive planet.
This artist's illustration is a visualization of the huge, glowing planetary body produced by a planetary collision. In the foreground, fragments of ice and rock fly away from the collision and will later cross in between Earth and the host star which is seen in the background of the image. Image Credit: Mark Garlick
It all started several years ago. An astronomer noticed that an otherwise ordinary star had a strange light curve. It suddenly brightened in infrared light, and the brightening lasted about 1,000 days. Then, a period of optical dimming started in December 2021 and lasted for about 500 days. The light curve caught the attention of other astronomers.An international team of astronomers studied the star and its light curve and published their results in the journal Nature.
This figure from the research shows some of the light curves and velocities from the collision and its aftermath gathered by different telescopes. In the top panel, shorter wavelength observations show deeper eclipse depths, indicating that the debris transiting the star is dominated by sub-micron-sized grains., one way that astronomers track the passage of time.)After gathering all of the light curves and observational data they could, the researchers puzzled over the cause.
So the collision created two things: a massive debris cloud and a new planet-size object. And the objects that collided were both ice-giant planets much larger than Earth. These planets were far more massive than Earth, and the energy the collision released would’ve been stupefying. The resulting synestia could’ve been hundreds of times larger than Earth, super-heated, and spinning rapidly. The collision and the resulting object explain the infrared brightening, but what about the dimming period that followed it?
In the future, the cloud will elongate as it orbits the star along with the post-collision body. That will scatter the star’s light, and telescopes like the JWST should be able to tell us more. The synestia will cool, too, and become a new planet orbiting the star. There may even be new moons.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
In a first, astronomers spot the afterglow of an exoplanet collisionsn-theme-milestones__description___SJHIa
Read more »
Astronomers spot violent afterglow of 2 massive planets that collided in a distant star systemRobert Lea is a science journalist in the U.K. who specializes in science, space, physics, astronomy, astrophysics, cosmology, quantum mechanics and technology. Rob's articles have been published in Physics World, New Scientist, Astronomy Magazine, All About Space and ZME Science. He also writes about science communication for Elsevier and the European Journal of Physics. Rob holds a bachelor of science degree in physics and astronomy from the U.K.’s Open University
Read more »
Researchers capture first-ever afterglow of huge planetary collision in outer spaceA chance social media post by an eagle-eyed amateur astronomer sparked the discovery of an explosive collision between two giant planets, which crashed into each other in a distant space system 1,800 light years away from planet Earth.
Read more »
Scientists study 'afterglow' from two exoplanets' collisionInteresting Engineering is a cutting edge, leading community designed for all lovers of engineering, technology and science.
Read more »
Afterglow of explosive collision between giant planets may have been detected in far-off star systemThe afterglow of a massive collision between two giant planets may have been detected for the first time. The wreckage of the collision could eventually cool and form an entirely new planet. If the observation is confirmed, it provides an amazing opportunity to watch the birth of a new world in real time and open a window into how planets form.
Read more »
European astronomers explore galaxy cluster G113Using ESA's XMM-Newton satellite and the Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR), a team of European astronomers has explored a galaxy cluster known as PSZ2G113.91-37.01 (or G113 for short).
Read more »