SPACE — Scientists have analyzed a burst of high-energy radiation known as a gamma-ray burst (GRB). They found that this GRB originated from the collision of two very dense neutron stars.
These findings confirm that the merger of these two extremely dense neutron stars is where elements such as gold are created.
Observations made using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the Hubble Space Telescope allowed scientists to see the formation of gold and other heavy elements.
The findings could help scientists better understand how these powerful neutron star merger events create unique environments in the universe capable of producing elements heavier than iron, such as silver and gold.
“Examining a kilanova like we’ve never seen it before with the powerful eyes of Hubble and JWST is very exciting,” Eleonora Troja, a member of the research team and astrophysicist from the University of Rome, told Space.com.
“This is the first time we have successfully verified that metals heavier than iron and silver were just forming in front of us.”
GRBs, which are the most powerful bursts of energy we know of in the universe, have previously been linked to neutron star mergers. However, this discovery is something different.
The GRB phenomenon can be divided into two groups. There are long GRBs with a duration of more than 2 seconds. On the other hand, there are short GRBs with a duration of less than 2 seconds.
Although neutron star mergers have been associated with short GRBs, long GRBs were previously believed to result from the collapse of massive stars and not from collisions like this.
The explosion was very bright and long, called GRB 230307A, and was detected by devices on NASA’s Fermi mission in March 2023. This explosion lasted for 200 seconds. This is the second most energetic GRB ever seen.
Seen in association with a kilanova, called AT2017gfo, and a neutron star merger that occurred about 8.3 million light years from Earth, the event broke the usual GRB conventions and challenged theories about how high-energy radiation bursts like this are launched.
The discovery of these gamma ray bursts could provide valuable knowledge about the universe. Stars are similar to the stellar furnaces that create the elements in the periodic table.
Stars experience nuclear fusion which converts hydrogen into helium in their cores. This event continues with the fusion of helium into heavier elements such as nitrogen, oxygen and carbon.
The most massive stars, about 7 to 8 times more massive than the Sun, can create elements up to iron in their cores. When the star’s core is filled with this element, fusion stops.
2024-02-22 03:36:00
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