MAGNETAR-POWERED KILONOVA BLAST (VIDEO)
Caption
This animation shows the sequence for forming a magnetar-powered kilonova, whose peak brightness reaches up to 10,000 times that of a classical nova. In this sequence, two orbiting neutron stars spiral closer and closer together before colliding and merging. This triggers an explosion that unleashes more energy in a half-second than the Sun will produce over its entire 10-billion-year lifetime. The merger forms an even more massive neutron star called a magnetar, which has an extraordinarily powerful magnetic field. The magnetar deposits energy into the ejected material, causing it to glow unexpectedly bright at infrared wavelengths.
Credit
NASA, ESA, and D. Player (STScI)
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