Rocket Lab has unveiled plans for a larger rocket that can carry bigger payloads than its current reusable trooper, the Electron. It’s called the Neutron and will be capable of carrying 8 metric tons to low-Earth orbit compared to the Electron’s 660 lbs capacity. Engadget reports: The Neutron will also have a fully reusable first stage that can land on an…
Tag: neutron
Evidence for white dwarfs consuming Earth-like worlds
For the first time, astronomers have detected the vaporized remains of the crusts of long-dead Earth-like and Mars-like planets in the atmospheres of white dwarf stars. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/vaporized-earth-like-mars-like-crusts-white-dwarf-stars…
Reclusive neutron star may have been found in famous supernova
What remains of the star that exploded just outside our galaxy in 1987? Debris has obscured scientists’ view, but two of NASA’s X-ray telescopes have revealed new clues. Source: https://phys.org/news/2021-02-reclusive-neutron-star-famous-supernova.html…
Quantum computing enables simulations to unravel mysteries of magnetic materials
A multi-institutional team became the first to generate accurate results from materials science simulations on a quantum computer that can be verified with neutron scattering experiments and other practical techniques. …
Mystery of gamma radiation solved: Hidden cannibal star is just having dinner
The mystery at the heart of an unexplained, bright point of gamma-ray light in the sky has been solved: a violent, whirling redback. Source: https://www.livescience.com/citizen-supercomputer-finds-neutron-star.html
Astronomers spot bizarre, never-before-seen activity from one of the strongest magnets in the universe
Astronomers from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Gravitational Wave Discovery (OzGrav) and CSIRO have just observed bizarre, never-seen-before behavior from a radio-loud magnetar—a rare type of neutron star and one of the strongest magnets in the universe. Source: https://phys.org/news/2021-02-astronomers-bizarre-never-before-seen-strongest-magnets.html…
Astronomers discover new candidate redback millisecond pulsar
Astronomers report the finding of a new candidate redback millisecond pulsar (MSP) binary associated with a gamma-ray source known as 4FGL J0940.3–7610. The newly found object is a short-period compact binary exhibiting X-ray emission that consists of a low-mass neutron star and a companion star with a mass most likely over 0.4 solar masses. The discovery is detailed in a paper…
Neutrons’ ‘evil twins’ may be crushing stars into black holes
The universe may be filled with “mirror” particles — and these otherwise-undetectable particles could be shrinking the densest stars in the universe, turning them into black holes. Source: https://www.livescience.com/neutron-evil-twins.html
A neutron-star crash spotted 3 years ago is still pumping out X-rays. But why?
Three years ago, two neutron stars collided in a cataclysmic crash, the first such merger ever observed directly. Naturally, scientists kept their eye on it — and now, something strange is happening. Source: https://www.livescience.com/neutron-star-crash-still-emitting-x-rays.html
Mystery particle may explain extreme X-rays shooting from the ‘Magnificent 7’ stars
Particles called axions may be the reason the ‘Magnificent 7’ cluster of neutron stars emits extreme X-rays. Source: https://www.livescience.com/neutron-star-axion-particles.html