The star with the strongest magnetism in the universe

Record-breaking star with magnetism 43,000 times stronger than the Sun could help unravel the mystery of how magnetars form.

A magnetar is a variant of a neutron star. Photo: NOIRLab — A magnetar is a variant of a neutron star. Photo *: NOIRLab*

Scientists have discovered the most powerful magnetic star in the universe, HD 45166. It has a unique helium-rich spectrum that hints at an unusual origin. In addition to setting a magnetic record, HD 45166 may represent an early stage in the life cycle of a magnetar, an exotic type of neutron star, Live Science reported on August 22.

Neutron stars are the densest known objects in the universe, packing as much mass as the Sun into a sphere the size of a city. Their highly magnetized counterparts are magnetars, which have some of the strongest magnetic fields in the universe. Neutron stars and magnetars form in supernova explosions, when the leftover material from a dead star condenses into an extremely dense and hot object. But astronomers are still trying to understand what makes magnetars different from regular neutron stars. Research published in the journal Science may shed light on that process.

Located 3,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Monoceros (Unicorn), HD 45166 has puzzled scientists for more than a decade. The star behaves similarly to a type of extremely bright object called a Wolf-Rayet star, except it is smaller, dimmer, and has an unusually high helium density. But no one has been able to come up with a plausible explanation for its strange spectral characteristics, said Tomer Shenar, an astronomer at the University of Amsterdam and co-author of the new study.

Using data from several ground-based observatories, Shenar and his colleagues discovered that HD 45166 has a magnetism 43,000 times stronger than that of the Sun. Unlike most helium stars that evolved from red giants, the team suspects that HD 45166 formed from the merger of two smaller stars. They also believe that in a few million years, it will explode in a supernova and reform as a magnetar.

An Khang (According to Live Science )

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