WOLF
RAYET STAR AND MAGNETAR – SCI & TECH
News: Highly Unusual Wolf-Rayet Star Will
Evolve into Magnetar, Astronomers Say
What's
in the news?
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Neutron stars, the compact remains of a
massive star following a supernova explosion, are the densest matter in the
Universe.
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Some neutron stars, known as magnetars,
also claim the record for the strongest magnetic fields of any object.
Wolf
Rayet Star:
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The rare Wolf–Rayet stars are highly luminous objects a thousand
times that of the Sun and have intrigued astronomers for long.
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They are massive stars and strip their outer hydrogen envelope, which is
associated with the fusion of Helium and other elements in the massive core.
Magnetar:
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A magnetar is a rare compact type of neutron star teeming with energy and
magnetism.
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They are relatively rare objects, with
only about thirty having been spotted within the Milky Way so far.
Features
of Magnetars:
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A magnetar is an exotic type of neutron
star, its defining feature is that it has an ultra-powerful magnetic field.
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The field is about 1,000 times stronger
than a normal neutron star and about a trillion times stronger than the
Earth’s.
High
luminosity:
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Magnetars have high magnetic fields in the
range of 1015 gauss and they emit energy in the range given by luminosities of
1037 – 1040 joules per second.
Neutron
Stars:
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Neutron stars are the remnants of giant
stars that died in a fiery explosion known as a supernova. They have a mass of about 1.4 times that of the sun.
Significance:
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The observations revealed multiple pulses,
with a frst pulse appearing only for about tens of microseconds, much faster
than other extreme astrophysical transients
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Studying these flares will not only help
us understand the physics of magnetars, it will also help in understanding fast
radio bursts, which are among the most enigmatic phenomena in astronomy.