A new member of a group of ultra-rare stars has just been discovered in the Milky Way!
It's known as MAXI J1816-195, about 30,000 light-years away. According to astronomer Alessandro Patruno's pulsar database, first observations and investigations imply an accreting X-ray millisecond pulsar, of which just 18 others are known.
"Wonderful Discovery"
According to Science Alert, when the numbers are that small, any new object is a wonderful discovery that can reveal useful statistical information about how things form, evolve, and act.
The Japanese Space Agency's Monitor of All-sky X-ray Image (MAXI) sensor first found the X-ray radiation emanating from the object on the exterior of the ISS last June 7.
A team led by astrophysicist Hitoshi Negoro of Nihon University in Japan announced on The Astronomer's Telegram (ATel) that they have discovered a formerly uncatalogued X-ray source in the galactic plane between the constellations of Sagittarius, Scutum, and Serpens. They stated it was flaring brilliantly, but they couldn't figure out if it were coming from the MAXI data.
Afterward, several astronomers joined to share their knowledge of the discovery. Astrophysicist Jamie Kennea of Pennsylvania State University and colleagues employed the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, a space-based telescope, to zero in on the location and verified the observation using an independent device.
The Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER), an X-ray NASA equipment housed on the ISS, also conducted an experiment led by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center astrophysicist Peter Bult.
At this point, the discovery took an intriguing turn. In addition to an X-ray thermonuclear burst, NICER also detected X-ray pulsations at 528.6 Hz, implying that the object is spinning at 528.6 times per second.
Bult's team said that the discovery indicates that MAXI J1816-195 is a neutron star and a "new accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar."
Read also: NASA Chandra X-Ray Telescope Snaps Galaxy Clusters Colliding in Space
What is a pulsar?
A pulsar is a type of neutron star, the compacted core of a supernova-killed massive star. They are extremely tiny and dense, weighing up to 2.2 times the mass of the Sun and fitting within a sphere measuring only 20 kilometers (12 miles) across.
A neutron star must meet certain criteria to be classified as a pulsar. Radiation beams are emitted from its poles, and due to the star's angular position, its light sweeps across Earth, appearing like lighthouse beams.
While pulsars that spin at such a fast rate, particularly at hundreds of times per second, are known as millisecond pulsars.
Some pulsars are driven only by rotation, while others are driven by accretion. The neutron star is part of a binary system with another star, and their orbits are so near that material from its companion is sucked into the neutron star.
Afterward, the material is funneled down the magnetic field lines of the neutron star to its poles, and it forms hotspots that glow brilliantly in X-rays.
The discovery is recent, so several wavelength observations are still being conducted. Bult and his team are conducting a thorough pulsar timing investigation, which according to them, will be distributed when more data is accessible.
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Written by Joaquin Victor Tacla
