Tag: Chandra X-Ray Observatory

NASA’s Chandra Peers Into Densest and Weirdest Stars

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Supernova remnant 3C 58. X-ray: NASA/CXC/ICE-CSIC/A. Marino et al.; Optical: SDSS; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/J. Major The supernova remnant 3C 58 contains a spinning neutron star, known as PSR J0205+6449, at its center. Astronomers studied this neutron star and others like it to probe the nature of matter inside these very dense objects. A new study, made using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory and ESA’s XMM-Newton, reveals that the interiors of neutron stars may contain a type of ultra-dense matter not found anywhere else in the Universe. In this image of 3C…

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‘Super’ Star Cluster Shines in New Look From NASA’s Chandra

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Star Cluster Westerlund 1. X-ray: NASA/CXC/INAF/M. Guarcello et al.; Optical: NASA/ESA/STScI; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/L. Frattare Westerlund 1 is the biggest and closest “super” star cluster to Earth. New data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, in combination with other NASA telescopes, is helping astronomers delve deeper into this galactic factory where stars are vigorously being produced. This is the first data to be publicly released from a project called the Extended Westerlund 1 and 2 Open Clusters Survey, or EWOCS, led by astronomers from the Italian National Institute of Astrophysics in Palermo. As part of EWOCS,…

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Stellar Beads on a String

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Galaxy cluster SDSS J1531+3414 X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO/O. Omoruyi et al.; Optical: NASA/ESA/STScI/G. Tremblay et al.; Radio: ASTRON/LOFAR; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/N. Wolk Astronomers have discovered one of the most powerful eruptions from a black hole ever recorded in the system known as SDSS J1531+3414 (SDSS J1531 for short). As explained in our press release, this mega-explosion billions of years ago may help explain the formation of a striking pattern of star clusters around two massive galaxies, resembling “beads on a string.” SDSS J1531 is a massive galaxy cluster containing hundreds of individual galaxies and huge reservoirs of hot gas and dark…

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Telescopes Show the Milky Way’s Black Hole is Ready for a Kick

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NASA/CXC/M.Weiss This artist’s illustration depicts the findings of a new study about the supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy called Sagittarius A* (abbreviated as Sgr A*). As reported in our latest press release, this result found that Sgr A* is spinning so quickly that it is warping spacetime — that is, time and the three dimensions of space — so that it can look more like a football. These results were made with NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory and the NSF’s Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA). A team of researchers applied a new…

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NASA Features New Discoveries at American Astronomical Society Meeting

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5 min read NASA Features New Discoveries at American Astronomical Society Meeting A cluster of young stars – about one to two million years old – located about 20,000 light years from Earth. X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO/Sejong Univ./Hur et al; Optical: NASA/STScI Experts will discuss new research from NASA missions at the 243rd meeting of the American Astronomical Society (AAS), on topics ranging from planets outside our solar system to fleeting, high-energy explosions in the universe. The meeting will take place Jan. 7-11 at the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center…

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