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Red explosions: Secret life of binary stars is revealed

Date:
January 24, 2013
Source:
University of Alberta
Summary:
An astrophysicist has revealed the workings of a celestial event involving binary stars that produce an explosion so powerful its luminosity ranks close to that of a supernova, an exploding star.
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A University of Alberta professor has revealed the workings of a celestial event involving binary stars that produce an explosion so powerful its luminosity ranks close to that of a supernova, an exploding star.

Theoretical astrophysicist Natalia Ivanova says researchers have long debated about what happens when binary stars, two stars that orbit one another, come together in a "common envelope."

"When this dramatic cannibalizing event ends there are two possible outcomes: the two stars merge into a single star or an initial binary transforms into an exotic short-period one," said Ivanova.

The event is believed to take anywhere from a dozen days to a few hundred years to complete -- an extremely fast time frame in terms of celestial events, Ivanova says.

More than half of all stars in the universe are binary stars, but Ivanova says it was not known what a common envelope event would look like until now.

After analyzing the physics of what happens in the outer layers of a common envelope, the U of A researchers found that hot and ionized material in the common envelope cools and expands, then releases energy in the form of a bright red outburst of light.

Ivanova linked these theoretically anticipated common envelope outbursts with recently discovered luminous red novae, mysterious transients that are brighter than novae and just a bit less luminous than supernovae.

"Our research both provides a way to identify common envelope events and explains the luminosity generated during the common envelope event," said Ivanova.

Ivanova is a Canada Research Chair in Astronomy and Astrophysics and was the lead researcher on the paper. She was assisted by PhD student Jose Luis Avendano Nandez. The research was published in the journal Science.


Story Source:

Materials provided by University of Alberta. Original written by Brian Murphy. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


Journal Reference:

  1. N. Ivanova, S. Justham, J. L. A. Nandez, J. C. Lombardi. Identification of the Long-Sought Common-Envelope Events. Science, 2013; 339 (6118): 433 DOI: 10.1126/science.1225540

Cite This Page:

University of Alberta. "Red explosions: Secret life of binary stars is revealed." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 24 January 2013. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130124150812.htm>.
University of Alberta. (2013, January 24). Red explosions: Secret life of binary stars is revealed. ScienceDaily. Retrieved March 28, 2024 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130124150812.htm
University of Alberta. "Red explosions: Secret life of binary stars is revealed." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130124150812.htm (accessed March 28, 2024).

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