Description

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Picture Courtesy: PHYS

Context:

NASA uncovers how a fast-moving pulsar fractured a massive galactic "bone" near the Milky Way's center.

About the Discovery

Astronomers have found a huge, bone-like structure in the Milky Way galaxy. They named it G359.13142-0.20005, or G359.13 for short, and nicknamed it “the Snake” because it looks like a long, winding snake.

G359.13 sits about 26,000 light-years from Earth, and its size is so vast that over 800 stars could fit within its length.

They used powerful telescopes like NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, the MeerKAT radio telescope in South Africa, and the Very Large Array (VLA) in New Mexico to study it.

They discovered that the break was caused by a super-fast, spinning neutron star, called a pulsar, hitting the structure at speeds between 1 and 2 million miles per hour. This collision distorted the structure’s magnetic field and created the visible break.

What Is a Pulsar?

A pulsar is a rapidly spinning neutron star, one of the densest objects in the universe. Neutron stars form when a massive star runs out of fuel, collapses, and explodes in a supernova. The explosion leaves behind a small, ultra-dense core—about 10–20 miles wide but heavier than our Sun.

During the supernova, the neutron star gets a “kick,” launching it at incredible speeds, sometimes over a million miles per hour. If the neutron star spins rapidly and emits beams of radiation from its magnetic poles, it is called a pulsar.

These beams sweep through space like a lighthouse, creating regular pulses of radio waves or X-rays that astronomers detect. In this case, the pulsar slams into G359.13, causing the fracture.

How Do Scientists Observe This?

Astronomers use two powerful tools to study G359.13:

Chandra X-ray Observatory: This NASA telescope detects X-rays, which are high-energy emissions from objects like pulsars or accelerated particles. In the images, X-ray data appear in blue, showing the pulsar’s position and the extra X-ray source near the fracture.
MeerKAT and Very Large Array (VLA): These radio telescopes capture radio waves from the filament’s energized particles. MeerKAT, located in South Africa, provides detailed gray-scale images of G359.13, revealing the fracture.

Source:

PHYS

PRACTICE QUESTION

Q. Consider the following statements:

The asteroid belt lies between Mars and Jupiter.
Halley’s comet is visible from Earth every 76 years.
Comets originate from the Kuiper Belt only.

Which of the above statements are correct?

A) 1 and 2 only

B) 2 and 3 only

C) 1 and 3 only

D) All of the above

Answer: A

Statement:

Statement 1 is correct: The asteroid belt is a torus-shaped region in the Solar System, located roughly between the orbits of the planets Mars and Jupiter. It contains a vast number of irregularly shaped bodies called asteroids or minor planets.

Statement 2 is correct: Halley's Comet is a periodic comet that is visible from Earth every 76 years (on average, though the exact period can vary by a few years). Its last appearance was in 1986, and it is next expected to be seen in 2061.

Statement 3 is incorrect: While many short-period comets (those with orbital periods of less than 200 years) do originate from the Kuiper Belt, a significant number of long-period comets (those with orbital periods of thousands or even millions of years) are believed to originate from the Oort Cloud.