An Impression of the Gamma-Ray Binary System LS 5039 (IMAGE)

Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe

An Impression of the Gamma-Ray Binary System LS 5039

Caption

A neutron star (left) and its massive, companion star (right). The research team suggests that the neutron star at the heart of LS 5039 has an ultra-strong magnetic field, and is arguably a magnetar. The field accelerates high-energy particles inside the bow-shaped region, thereby emitting gamma-rays that characterize the gamma-ray binary system.

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Kavli IPMU

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