For the first time, astronomers may have spotted the afterglow from an epic cosmic event known as a ‘kilonova’.
- They think they’ve detected an ‘afterglow’ from a 2017 kilonova event, in the form of X-rays captured by NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory.
What is Kilonovas?
- Kilonovas are immense explosions caused by neutron stars colliding into each other, sending an intense jet of of high-energy particles through space.
- They produce a luminous flash of radioactive light that produces large quantities of elements like silver, gold, platinum and uranium.
- The merger between the two neutron stars – some of the densest objects in the universe – creates a blast 1,000 times brighter than a classical nova.
What are Neutron stars?
- Neutron stars are the collapsed cores of giant stars.
- They have a very small radius (typically 18.6 miles, or 30 km) and very high density, composed predominantly of closely packed neutrons.
- They’re among the densest objects in the universe.
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