2MASS and Pan-STARRS1 surveys tagged posts

First Pairs of White Dwarf–main sequence binaries discovered in clusters shine new light on stellar evolution

Astronomers discover first pairs of white dwarf and main sequence stars in clusters, shining new light on stellar evolution
This image from the ALMA telescope shows star system HD101584 and the complex gas clouds surrounding the binary. It is the result of a pair of stars sharing a common outer layer during their last moments. Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO), Olofsson et al / Robert Cumming

Astronomers at the University of Toronto (U of T) have discovered the first pairs of white dwarf and main sequence stars—”dead” remnants and “living” stars—in young star clusters. Described in a new study published in The Astrophysical Journal, this breakthrough offers new insights into an extreme phase of stellar evolution, and one of the biggest mysteries in astrophysics.

Scientists can now begin to bridge the gap between the earliest and final stages of binary star systems—two stars that orbit a shared center of g...

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