[Epoch Times February 03, 2021](The Epoch Times reporter Di Rui compiled a report) An international research team found that a class ofDouble star systemHigh energyPulsar, They ate their companion violently to strengthen themselves. Scientists call them “spider stars”.
These high-energy celestial bodies are mysterious and have a stable blinking frequency, which has attracted the attention of astronomers for a long time. They are usually high-density cores left by massive stars that explode into supernovae at the end of their lifespan. These cores are generally neutron stars or white dwarfs.When the magnetic field radiation is strong enough, this kind of star starts to spin frantically and becomesPulsar。
They emit a space ray signal every time they rotate, and the period varies from a few milliseconds to a few seconds. Their periods are so stable that astronomers compare them to “beacon” signals in space, and imagine that they will be used to navigate space travel through signals from pulsars located in different directions in space in the future.
A recent study published on the preprint network arXiv found a special kind of pulsars: around them there is a companion star rotating around them, their rotation period is usually less than 30 milliseconds, and the matter of its companion star is constant. Be absorbed by them. Scientists call this pulsar the spider star.
The spider star is divided into two sub-categories: black widow spider star and red back spider star. The former has absorbed less than one-tenth the mass of the sun’s companion star (usually only 0.02 to 0.03 times the mass of the sun); the latter’s companion still has more than one-tenth the mass of the sun.
Because the mass of the companion is slightly larger, the companion of the Redback Spider Star will block a signal to the earth every time it orbits the pulsar. The companion star of the Black Widow Spider Star is not enough to cause this effect.
This study found a total of 8 pairs of pulsarsDouble star system. The frequencies of these pulsars are in the millisecond range. Among the 8 pulsars, 3 are newly discovered black widow spider stars, 1 is redback spider stars, and 1 is between the two which are difficult to define.
According to the study, this pulsar will be classified as a redback spider star for the time being, because its companion star will block its light every time it turns. Its companion star is only 0.055 times the mass of the sun or slightly larger, much larger than the companion star of the typical black widow spider star, but much smaller than the companion star of the red back spider star. Now, other characteristics of this binary star system are still a mystery.
The data for this study comes from the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico. Unfortunately, the 305-meter-diameter radio telescope was damaged and scrapped last December. ◇
Editor in charge: Zhu Hanru
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