GARCHING, Germany, Oct. 11 (UPI) -- The spiral structure surrounding a pulsating red giant star seen by a telescope in Chile is the first such structure ever seen around a star, astronomers say. The surprising structure was observed in an envelope of gas and dust surrounding the star R Sculptoris about 1000 light-years from Earth, the European Southern Observatory reported from its headquarters in Garching, Germany. A previously unseen companion star orbiting the red giant has likely created this structure, astronomers say. \"We\'ve seen shells around this kind of star before, but this is the first time we\'ve ever seen a spiral of material coming out from a star, together with a surrounding shell,\" ESO scientist Matthias Maercker said. Late in their lives, stars with masses up to eight times that of the Sun become red giants and lose a large amount of their mass in a dense stellar wind while periodically undergoing thermal pulses. These are short-lived phases of explosive helium burning in a shell around the stellar core resulting in the formation of a large shell of dust and gas around the star. Thermal pulses occur approximately every 10,000 to 50,000 years and last only a few hundred years, astronomers said. The new observations of R Sculptoris show it experienced a thermal pulse event about 1,800 years ago that lasted for about 200 years, with the companion star shaping the cosmic wind from the red giant into a spiral structure.
GMT 20:46 2018 Tuesday ,23 January
New app to help Indians apply for UAE jobs visaGMT 21:37 2018 Sunday ,14 January
Champagne box-sized satellite launchedGMT 21:32 2018 Sunday ,14 January
Man's best friend goes high techGMT 16:11 2018 Friday ,12 January
UAE Research Programme for Rain Enhancement Science leads the way to new scientific and technological horizonsGMT 09:35 2018 Tuesday ,09 January
SpaceX launches secretive Zuma missionGMT 21:38 2018 Friday ,05 January
Our reliance on technology is having an effect on us allGMT 07:47 2017 Sunday ,24 December
China jails VPN owner for over five yearsGMT 20:59 2017 Saturday ,25 November
Now make unlimited voice, video calls in UAE for Dh50

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2025 ©
Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2025 ©
Send your comments
Your comment as a visitor