Latest news with #Ziteng(Andy)Wang
Time of India
4 days ago
- Science
- Time of India
Rare space object blasts X-rays and radio waves every 44 minutes
Astronomers have detected a rare space object that emits powerful bursts of energy in both radio and X-ray wavelengths every 44 minutes. The object, known as ASKAP J1832-0911 , lies around 15,000 light-years away in the Milky Way and is the first of its kind to show such behaviour across both ends of the electromagnetic spectrum. Long-period transients (LPTs) a recently identified class of cosmic bodies typically emit brief pulses of radio waves separated by hours or minutes. But until now, none had been observed producing X-ray emissions . ASKAP J1832-0911 has changed that, emitting energy levels far beyond anything previously recorded in this category. 'This object is unlike anything we have seen before,' said Dr Ziteng (Andy) Wang, lead author of the study and a researcher at Curtin University, part of the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR). The findings were published this week in *Nature*. A lucky observation by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Giao dịch CFD với công nghệ và tốc độ tốt hơn IC Markets Đăng ký Undo ASKAP J1832-0911 was initially detected via radio signals by the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP), operated by CSIRO on Wajarri Yamaji Country. By sheer coincidence, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory happened to be surveying the same region of sky at the same time, enabling astronomers to match the radio pulses with bursts of X-ray radiation. 'Discovering that ASKAP J1832-0911 was emitting X-rays felt like finding a needle in a haystack,' said Dr Wang. 'The ASKAP telescope has a broad view of the sky, but Chandra focuses on a much smaller region, so the overlap was a matter of great fortune.' Since the first LPT was discovered in 2022, around ten more have been identified. But none has demonstrated behaviour as intense and regular as ASKAP J1832-0911. New Physics on the horizon? Astronomers suspect ASKAP J1832-0911 could be either an ageing magnetar a type of dead star with extremely strong magnetic fields or a binary system containing a magnetised white dwarf, the remnant of a low-mass star. 'ASKAP J1831-0911 could be a magnetar, or it could be a pair of stars in a binary system where one is a highly magnetised white dwarf,' Wang explained. 'However, even those theories do not fully explain what we are observing. This discovery could indicate a new type of physics or new models of stellar evolution.' A doorway to more discoveries According to Professor Nanda Rea from the Institute of Space Science (ICE-CSIC) and the Institute of Space Studies of Catalonia (IEEC), the discovery suggests ASKAP J1832-0911 may be the first of many similar objects. 'Finding one such object hints at the existence of many more,' Rea said. 'The discovery of its transient X-ray emission opens fresh insights into their mysterious nature.'
Gizmodo
6 days ago
- General
- Gizmodo
Mysterious Space Object Is Pumping Out a Pair of Signals That Shouldn't Go Together
Astronomers have discovered a strange new object that behaves unlike any observed before. The hope is that the source will provide some much-needed insight into the origin of mysterious cosmic signals that have puzzled experts for the last several years. A team of researchers led by astronomers from the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR) in Australia found the object—known as ASKAP J1832-0911—using the ASKAP radio telescope, which picked up pulses of radio waves emanating from it. This suggests that it belongs to a mysterious, recently discovered class of objects called long-period transients (LPTs), which emit radio pulses over unusually long and regular intervals—typically minutes or hours apart. Since LPT signals were first detected by ICRAR astronomers in 2022, only 10 of these objects have been documented, according to a statement from the organization. Astronomers are still trying to figure out exactly what LPTs are and why they exhibit such odd behavior. In March, there appeared to be a new break in the case when a study linked LPT pulses to a binary star system composed of a white dwarf and a red dwarf, but J1832-0911 has turned out to be especially peculiar. While the ASKAP radio telescope was observing it, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory just so happened to be looking at the same piece of sky. This revealed that the object, located in the Milky Way some 15,000 light-years from Earth, was also sending out pulses of X-rays. Detecting X-ray emissions from ASKAP J1832-0911 'felt like finding a needle in a haystack,' lead author Ziteng (Andy) Wang, an astronomer at the Curtin University arm of ICRAR, said in the statement. 'The ASKAP radio telescope has a wide field view of the night sky, while Chandra observes only a fraction of it. So, it was fortunate that Chandra observed the same area of the night sky at the same time.' This is the first time that X-ray emissions have been observed from an LPT. J1832-0911 emits radio waves and X-rays simultaneously for a period of two minutes over intervals of 44 minutes, exhibiting properties that are 'unique amongst known galactic objects and require a new explanation,' the authors state in their paper, published today in the journal Nature. Uncovering the true nature of J1832-0911 will require further research, but Wang and his colleagues have some initial ideas about what it might be. 'ASKAP [J1832-0911] could be a magnetar (the core of a dead star with powerful magnetic fields),' he said. Simultaneous pulses of radio waves and X-rays have been observed from magnetars before. Alternatively, 'it could be a pair of stars in a binary system where one of the two is a highly magnetised white dwarf (a low-mass star at the end of its evolution),' Wang added. In this scenario—which has also been previously documented—the interaction between a rapidly spinning, magnetized white dwarf and its companion causes the system to emit pulses that span the electromagnetic spectrum—from X-rays to radio waves. But according to Wang and his colleagues, neither of these possibilities can fully explain what they observed from J1832-0911. Thus, this discovery could indicate that some new physics is taking place, or that astronomers need to tweak existing models of stellar evolution. Now, the search for more of these bizarre objects is on. 'Finding one such object hints at the existence of many more,' co-author Nanda Rea, an astrophysicist at the Institute of Space Science (ICE-CSIC) and the Institute of Space Studies of Catalonia (IEEC) in Spain, said in the statement. The discovery of J1832-0911's transient X-ray emissions 'opens up fresh insights' into the mysterious nature of LPTs, she said.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Chance X-Ray Discovery Reveals Mystery Object 15,000 Light Years Away
The mystery of strangely blinking objects scattered throughout the Milky Way just deepened. Something 15,000 light-years away from the Sun isn't just slowly, methodically beaming out radio waves – each pulse is also blasting emissions in X-ray wavelengths, serendipitous observations have revealed. This behavior is completely new and scientists are at a loss to explain it. "This object is unlike anything we have seen before," says astronomer Ziteng (Andy) Wang of the Curtin University node of the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR) in Australia. For a few years now, powerful radio telescopes in the Australian desert have been collecting observations of strange objects: ones that emit long pulses of radio waves with lengthy pauses between each emission. The first, detailed in a 2022 paper, is 4,000 light-years away, and blasts out 30 to 60 seconds of radio waves every 18 minutes. The next one was found to be 15,000 light-years away emitting five-minute blasts of radio waves every 22 minutes. The third identified, 5,000 light-years away, spits out 30 to 60 seconds of radio waves every 2.9 hours. To date, around 10 of these long-period transients (LPTs), as they are known, have been discovered by astronomers around the world. This newly discovered object ups the ante, however. Named ASKAP J1832-0911, it emits a two minute pulse every 44 minutes that consists of radio waves and X-rays. We might never have known this, either, except that the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder radio telescope and NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory happened to be viewing the same patch of sky at the same time and recorded simultaneous observations that revealed the weird behavior. "Discovering that ASKAP J1832-0911 was emitting X-rays felt like finding a needle in a haystack," Wang says. "The ASKAP radio telescope has a wide field view of the night sky, while Chandra observes only a fraction of it. So, it was fortunate that Chandra observed the same area of the night sky at the same time." The pulses of the object are very bright, and the luminosity of both kinds of emission is correlated. We also know the source is compact, and that no emission was detected prior to November 2023, suggesting that it only recently became active. At this point, however, it starts to become more difficult to narrow down what the object could be. "ASKAP J1831-0911 could be a magnetar (the core of a dead star with powerful magnetic fields), or it could be a pair of stars in a binary system where one of the two is a highly magnetized white dwarf (a low-mass star at the end of its evolution)," Wang says. "However, even those theories do not fully explain what we are observing. This discovery could indicate a new type of physics or new models of stellar evolution." Both explanations have issues. Although the radio and X-ray pulses are in line with with magnetar behavior, the behavior of the object's other emissions are inconsistent with magnetar activity. Conversely, white dwarf emission is seven orders of magnitude weaker than pulses emitted by ASKAP J1831-0911, and polarized in a way we don't see from the mystery object. It remains to be seen whether other LPTs can emit X-radiation in addition to their radio signals, and, if they do, how common the behavior is. It's also possible that ASKAP J1831-0911 is a different kind of object from the other LPTs, but it's more exciting if it's a variation on the theme, since the presence of X-rays means any explanation needs to take them into account. That could help rule out some options, the researchers say. "Finding one such object hints at the existence of many more," says astronomer Nanda Rea of the Institute of Space Science and the Catalan Institute for Space Studies in Spain. "The discovery of its transient X-ray emission opens fresh insights into their mysterious nature." The research has been published in Nature. SpaceX Starship's Latest Test Ends in Destruction Over Indian Ocean Star Caught Orbiting Inside Another Star in Bizarre First JWST's Deepest Gaze at a Single Spot in Space Reveals Ancient Wonders
