This Perfectly Spherical Supernova Is Weirding Us Out
The universe is a chaotic place filled with exploding stars, material falling into black holes, and rogue planets wandering off on their own. All that chaos makes astronomers suspicious when they glimpse a hint of perfection in the cosmos, like a bubble of material left over from the death of a star that appears to be in perfectly symmetrical shape.
Astronomers recently discovered the remnant of a galactic supernova with a remarkable circular symmetry, making it stand out as one of the most perfectly spherical objects detected in the universe. Perfection is not always a bad problem to have, but it does prompt certain questions regarding how the object came to be this way.
The discovery, submitted to the Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia and made available on the preprint website arXiv, was spotted in images collected by the Australian Square Kilometer Array Pathfinder. The researchers behind the paper identified the object as a galactic supernova remnant—an expanding cloud of debris that forms in the aftermath of the exploding death of a star.
The object, located in the Milky Way galaxy, has been dubbed Teleios, the Greek word for perfect. Although it is almost perfectly symmetrical, Teleios is not very bright. It has one of the lowest recorded surface brightness levels among known supernova remnants. Astronomers observing Teleios are also uncertain about its distance to Earth, estimating that it could either be around 7,175 or 25,114 light-years away. That's a huge difference in distance, and the uncertainty is affecting our understanding of how long the object has been there.
The two different distances imply different sizes for Teleios, since objects appear smaller the farther away they are. At its closer distance to Earth, the supernova remnant would be about 46 light-years wide. If it were much farther away, it would be a much larger cloud—around 157 light-years across. Based on its size variation, the scientists suggest that this particular cloud of expanding material has either been around for less than 1,000 years at its smaller size, or a much older supernova remnant that formed more than 10,000 years ago and grew to its larger size.
Another odd thing about Teleios is that it only appears in radio wavelengths, even though modeling of the object suggests it should have X-ray emissions. The scientists behind the study try to explain the lack of X-ray emissions by suggesting Teleios is a Type Ia supernova, which takes place in a binary star system in which one of the stars is a white dwarf. In that case, a zombie star is often left behind along with the supernova remnant. There is a nearby star that fits the profile, but it would mean that Teleios is much smaller, spanning across a mere 11 light-years in the Milky Way. However, none of the measurements of Teleios' distance correspond to this small size.
'We consider several different scenarios to explain Teleios's unusual properties, all of which have their challenges,' the researchers wrote in the paper. 'While we deem the Type Ia scenario the most likely, we note that no direct evidence is available to definitively confirm any scenario.'
The researchers suggest that sensitive and high-resolution observations of this object are needed in order to uncover its mysteriously perfect shape and unusual qualities.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Yahoo
Scientists unlock secrets of oldest rocks on Earth
Earth formed about 4.6 billion years ago, during the geological eon known as the Hadean. The name 'Hadean' comes from the Greek god of the underworld, reflecting the extreme heat that likely characterised the planet at the time. By 4.35 billion years ago, the Earth might have cooled down enough for the first crust to form and life to emerge. However, very little is known about this early chapter in Earth's history, as rocks and minerals from that time are extremely rare. This lack of preserved geological records makes it difficult to reconstruct what the Earth looked like during the Hadean Eon, leaving many questions about its earliest evolution unanswered. We are part of a research team that has confirmed the oldest known rocks on Earth are located in northern Québec. Dating back 4.3 billion years, these rocks provide a rare and invaluable glimpse into the origins of our planet. The Hadean Eon is the first period in the geological timescale, spanning from Earth's formation 4.6 billion years ago and ending around 4.03 billion years ago. The oldest terrestrial materials ever dated by scientists are extremely rare zircon minerals that were discovered in western Australia. These zircons were formed as early as 4.4 billion years ago, and while their host rock eroded away, the durability of zircons allowed them to be preserved for a long time. Studies of these zircon minerals has given us clues about the Hadean environment, and the formation and evolution of Earth's oldest crust. The zircons' chemistry suggests that they formed in magmas produced by the melting of sediments deposited at the bottom of an ancient ocean. This suggests that the zircons are evidence that the Hadean Eon cooled rapidly, and liquid water oceans were formed early on. Other research on the Hadean zircons suggests that the Earth's earliest crust was mafic (rich in magnesium and iron). Until recently, however, the existence of that crust remained to be confirmed. In 2008, a study led by associate professor Jonathan O'Neil (then a McGill University doctoral student) proposed that rocks of this ancient crust had been preserved in northern Québec and were the only known vestige of the Hadean. Since then, the age of those rocks — found in the Nuvvuagittuq Greenstone Belt — has been controversial and the subject of ongoing scientific debate. The Nuvvuagittuq Greenstone Belt is located in the northernmost region of Québec, in the Nunavik region above the 55th parallel. Most of the rocks there are metamorphosed volcanic rocks, rich in magnesium and iron. The most common rocks in the belt are called the Ujaraaluk rocks, meaning 'big old solid rock' in Inuktitut. The age of 4.3 billion years was proposed after variations in neodymium-142 were detected, an isotope produced exclusively during the Hadean through the radioactive decay of samarium-146. The relationship between samarium and neodymium isotope abundances had been previously used to date meteorites and lunar rocks, but before 2008 had never been applied to Earth rocks. This interpretation, however, was challenged by several research groups, some of whom studied zircons within the belt and proposed a younger age of at most 3.78 billion years, placing the rocks in the Archean Eon instead. In the summer of 2017, we returned to the Nuvvuagittuq belt to take a closer look at the ancient rocks. This time, we collected intrusive rocks — called metagabbros — that cut across the Ujaraaluk rock formation, hoping to obtain independent age constraints. The fact that these newly studied metagabbros are in intrusion in the Ujaraaluk rocks implies that the latter must be older. The project was led by masters student Chris Sole at the University of Ottawa, who joined us in the field. Back in the laboratory, we collaborated with French geochronologist Jean-Louis Paquette. Additionally, two undergraduate students — David Benn (University of Ottawa) and Joeli Plakholm (Carleton University) participated to the project. We combined our field observations with petrology, geochemistry, geochronology and applied two independent samarium-neodymium age dating methods, dating techniques used to assess the absolute ages of magmatic rocks, before these become metamorphic rocks. Both assessments yielded the same result: the intrusive rocks are 4.16 billion years old. Since these metagabbros cut across the Ujaraaluk formation, the Ujaraaluk rocks must be even older, placing them firmly in the Hadean Eon. Studying the Nuvvuagittuq rocks, the only preserved rocks from the Hadean, provides a unique opportunity to learn about the earliest history of our planet. They can help us understand how the first continents formed, and how and when Earth's environment evolved to become habitable. Hanika Rizo is an Associate Professor in the Department of Earth Sciences at Carleton University Jonathan O'Neil is a Professor in Earth and Environmental Sciences at L'Université d'Ottawa/University of Ottawa This article was originally published by The Conversation and is republished under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article
Miami Herald
a day ago
- Miami Herald
‘Large'-eyed creature with ‘gem'-like pattern found in pond. It's a new species
Near a river in the Democratic Republic of the Congo sat a seasonal pond, formed during the wet season and already shrinking. Inside swam an 'iridescent' creature with a 'gem'-like pattern. Something about it caught the attention of visiting scientists — and for good reason. It turned out to be a new species. Béla Nagy and a team of 'colleagues from the University of Lubumbashi' spent seven years visiting rivers in southern Africa, Nagy wrote in a study published June 30 in the peer-reviewed journal Ecology and Diversity. Researchers were primarily interested in a group of 'seasonal' fish known as killifish but, during their 2023 surveys, came across a different type of fish known as a lampeye because of 'the reflective pigments' in its eye, the study said. Intrigued by the fish, researchers caught several specimens for a closer look, analyzed their DNA and realized they'd discovered a new species: Lacustricola gemma, or the gem lampeye fish. Gem lampeyes are considered 'small,' reaching about an inch long, the study said. They have 'short' heads with a 'rounded' snout and 'large' 'silver' eyes. Photos show the 'iridescent' coloring of the new species. Each of its scales has a 'diamond-shaped, light blue' spot in the center, 'creating an irregular reflective pattern,' the study said. Researchers said they named the new species after the ancient Greek word for ''precious stone' or 'gem'' because it has 'the appearance of tiny gems.' Like other lampeyes, the new species lives 'near the surface of large bodies of water, such as rivers and lakes,' but 'migrate to breed in flooded areas of shallow, typically seasonal wetland habitats at the onset of the rainy season,' the study said. Gem lampeye fish were found in a small pond left from 'a drying ephemeral riverbed,' researchers said. The water was cloudy and 'overgrown by grass' on the edge. Researchers kept a few of these fish in an aquarium for further observation and saw them spawning 'relatively large' eggs, the study said. So far, the new species has only been found at two sites in the southern Democratic Republic of the Congo. The country is in central Africa and borders Angola, Burundi, Central African Republic, the Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. Researchers believe the new species is vulnerable to extinction because of its limited distribution and 'the risk of continuous decline of the known wetland habitats in which it is known to live.' The new species was identified by its DNA, coloring, body proportions and other subtle physical features, the study said. Nagy also discovered four more new species of fish, including the rainbow seasonal killifish.
Gizmodo
3 days ago
- Gizmodo
This Weird Pyramid Always Lands on the Same Face, Confirming 40-Year-Old Theory
'Bille' is the first-ever monostable tetrahedron, or a pyramid-like shape with four triangular faces that has one stable resting position. What this means is that Bille, no matter how you throw it and how it lands, will flip back on exactly the same side every single time. In a recent preprint submitted to arXiv, mathematicians revealed the first physical model of Bille, closing a decades-old theory proposed by the renowned British mathematician John Conway. Made of lightweight carbon fiber and dense tungsten carbide, Bille represents an array of ridiculously sophisticated engineering decisions—making this as much a technological achievement as a mathematical one. It's no surprise, therefore, that its self-righting property additionally hints at some exciting applications for the spaceflight industry—which notably experienced two recent landing mishaps with toppled-over lunar landers. In his initial conjecture, Conway surmised that a tetrahedron with unevenly distributed weight across its sides would always flip to the same side, although a few years later Conway himself rejected the idea. Some mathematicians still thought there could be something to it, however, namely study co-author Robert Dawson, who almost succeeded in proving Conway right in the 1980s using lead foil and sticks of bamboo. 'But my recollection was that this only almost worked because of angular momentum,' Dawson, now a mathematician at Saint Mary's University in Canada, told Gizmodo. 'In the way that if a car comes across a bump in the road and it's already moving, it'll get over it thanks to angular momentum. But it might have a hard time starting up against that bump.' Ideally, the monostable tetrahedron shouldn't need another push to flop back on the 'base' side. For a while, it seemed like Conway's theory would end up in a box of really-cool-but-unlikely math ideas—until about three years ago, when mathematician Gábor Domokos and his student, Gergő Almádi at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics, reached out to Dawson. Domokos, a long-time expert on tricky balancing problems in geometry, had already discovered the gömböc, a roundish object that balances only on two points like a roly-poly toy. While an impressive discovery, the gömböc, with its mostly round, multi-sided design, features relatively easy conditions for self-balancing, Domoko told Gizmodo. The fewer sides a figure has and the smaller the angles are on each side, the harder it is to make that figure monostable, he said. Picture the common six-sided die. 'If it is a fair die, it will land on each face with equal probability,' Domoko explained. Even if someone cheats and modifies the die by putting some extra weight on a couple of surfaces, the probability will shift slightly, but it should still be possible for the die to stand on all its faces. In that sense, the tetrahedron, with its pointy corners and tiny acute angles across its four sides, makes it the 'most difficult problem, the highest category' of shapes in terms of monostability—barring some kind of engineering miracle. Which really happened. After deriving a theoretical model to calculate Bille's dimensions, Almádi, an architecture student, spearheaded the quest to build a structure that, somehow, had one side made from a 'really heavy material, the lighter parts almost air, and an almost empty skeleton,' Domokos said. The team settled on carbon tubes for the skeleton and, for the base, dense tungsten carbide—a metal alloy twice as heavy as steel. Even after all that, an issue remained: For some reason, Bille kept landing on two different sides, not the one intended side. 'Then we looked at it, and there was a very small glob of glue which was sticking to one end!' Domoko exclaimed. Despite the chief engineer's assurances that it made no difference, Domoko insisted on removing the tiny blob of glue—the density and shape of which were also calculated with ridiculous precision. And—voilà. Bille made mathematical history. That said, the engineers played a huge role in making this possible, Domokos clarified. 'They were all part of the creation process—the geometry, engineering, and technological design. They all needed to click. If you take out any of these, it doesn't work.' To make sure Bille wasn't just a one-time dud, Domokos' team succeeded in making a second model—though this probably isn't something one could easily make at home. 'We wish good luck to anyone doing it,' Domokos joked. 'But somebody doing it now has a huge advantage compared to us, because we didn't know whether it would work.' Domokos is particularly excited to see what might become of Bille further down the line. One reason Domokos didn't want to stop at merely modeling Bille was because of gömböc, he explained. Like many aesthetically pleasing mathematical breakthroughs, gömböc got a lot of love from artistic communities and natural scientists drawing parallels between turtle shells and gömböc—which Domokos more or less expected. What he didn't expect was that Novo Nordisk, in collaboration with MIT and Harvard, would take interest in gömböc's design principles for an insulin capsule that self-rights itself once inside a stomach, eliminating the need for needle injections. 'And it sounded so outlandish—like science fiction,' Domokos said. 'Gömböc taught me that physical objects are crucial—there are many bright people out there who are not mathematically minded, but they can look at something and it will reflect in their minds many other things.' Still, it'll probably be a while—if ever—before Bille ends up in the blueprint for the latest lunar lander, which Domokos knows will be extremely challenging. 'When you develop something, you have to wait and technological innovation will catch up. Sometimes it takes 100 years, sometimes it takes 10 years. Mathematics is always a little bit ahead.'
