Rare discovery about the evolution of a star

The core of a dying star has been revealed for the first time in the supernova explosion 2021yfj, allowing scientists to observe how elements are distributed inside as the star nears the end of its life.

Scientists have for the first time observed the inside of a dying star as it explodes, providing a rare glimpse into stellar evolution.

Accordingly, supernova 2021yfj, more than 2 billion light years from Earth, has exposed both silicon and sulfur layers deep in the core, helping to strengthen the understanding of the layer structure of massive stars near the end of their lives.

Using telescopes peering deep into space, the team found that the star's outermost layers of hydrogen and helium had long since been shed, but surprisingly, the heavier inner layers were also exposed in the explosion.

Steve Schulze, a member of the research team at Northwestern University, said this was the first time they had observed a star eroded to such an extent.

Supernova expert Anya Nugent from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics said the discovery confirms the nature of stellar layers, providing direct evidence of how light and heavy elements are distributed in the core of massive stars as they prepare to end their lives.

The study was published in the journal Nature on August 27. Stars can last from millions to trillions of years until they run out of fuel. The largest stars will die in an explosion called a supernova./.

(Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/phat-hien-hiem-ve-qua-trinh-tien-hoa-cua-mot-ngoi-sao-post1058338.vnp