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    Category Astronomy/Space

    Lopsided Galaxies Shed Light on the Speed of Dark Matter

    January 30, 2024, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    Lopsided galaxies shed light on the speed of dark matter
    Fig. 1. Dynamical friction. The panels depict sparse areas of the universe with dark color and dense areas with light color. The upper panels show the density around a galaxy if the galaxy’s gravity bends (left) or does not bend (right) the trajectories of dark matter particles. The lower panel shows the difference between them, or how the galaxy affects the distribution of dark matter. The arrows represent the acceleration caused by the overdensity behind the galaxy, from which the friction on the center of the galaxy is deducted. Since the arrows have different directions and strengths in different areas, the tidal forces are able to change the shape of a galaxy. Credit: Rain Kipper

    In new research published in Astronomy & Astrophysics, researchers have figured out how to precisely c...

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    ‘Old Smokers’ and ‘Squalling Newborns’ among Hidden Stars Spotted for First Time

    January 29, 2024, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    Artist impressions of a so-called 'Old Smoker' red giant star and 'Squalling Newborn' protostar, both observed as part of new research.
    Discovery: Pictured main is an artist’s impression of a cloud of gas and dust being thrown out by a new type of red giant star dubbed an ‘old smoker’. It was spotted along with dozens of so-called ‘squalling newborn’ protostars (inset) at the heart of the Milky Way by an international team of astronomers.
    Credit
    Philip Lucas/University of Hertfordshire
    Licence type Attribution (CC BY 4.0)

    ‘Hidden’ stars including a new type of elderly giant nicknamed an ‘old smoker’ have been spotted for the first time by astronomers.

    The mystery objects exist at the heart of our Milky Way galaxy and can sit quietly for decades – fading almost to invisibility – before suddenly puffing out clouds of smoke, according to a new study published today in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Societ...

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    Stars Travel More Slowly at Milky Way’s Edge

    January 28, 2024, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    Physicists discovered stars near the edge of the Milky Way travel more slowly than those closer to its center — a surprise suggesting our galaxy’s gravitational core may have less dark matter than previously thought.

    By clocking the speed of stars throughout the Milky Way galaxy, MIT physicists have found that stars further out in the galactic disk are traveling more slowly than expected compared to stars that are closer to the galaxy’s center. The findings raise a surprising possibility: The Milky Way’s gravitational core may be lighter in mass, and contain less dark matter, than previously thought.

    The new results are based on the team’s analysis of data taken by the Gaia and APOGEE instruments...

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    Astrophysical Jet caught in a ‘Speed Trap’

    January 27, 2024, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    Violett leuchtende und wabernde Gasblase in Cocoon-Form vor schwarzem Hintergrund mit blauen Lichtstrahlen entlang einer Linie im Inneren
    Artist’s impression of the SS 433 system, depicting the large-scale jets (blue) and the surrounding Manatee Nebula (red). The jets are initially observable only for a short dis-tance from the microquasar after launch — too small to be visible in this picture. The jets then travel undetected for a distance of approximately 80 light-years (25 parsecs) before un-dergoing a transformation, abruptly reappearing as bright sources of non-thermal emission (X-ray and gamma-ray). Particles are efficiently accelerated at this location, likely indicating the presence of a strong shock: a discontinuity in the medium capable of accelerating particles.
    © Science Communication Lab for MPIK/H.E.S.S.

    The science fiction author Arthur C...

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