How a Once-Massive Star Evolved into a Diamond Planet?
Astronomers first detected an unusual star called a pulsar, which is a little star spinning at about 20 km in diameter - the size of a small town - which emits a beam of radio waves. As the star spins and radio beam sweeps repeatedly over the Earth, radio telescopes detect a regular pattern of radio pulses.
Irregular movements in the beams clued scientists that there was a planet orbiting the pulsar companion, leading them to the world of diamonds. Astronomers said that two of the 1800 pulsars known planets and hidden is the planet first diamond ever seen.
Astronomers think that the "diamond planet" is all that remains of a once-massive star, most of whose matter was siphoned off towards the pulsar.
The planet, which is being dubbed as PSR J1719-1438, is denser than anything discovered so far, and is entirely made of carbon, according to the study led by Professor Matthew Bailes of Swinburne University of Technology in Australia.
A diamond forms when carbon is put under immense pressure. Since the molecules of the planet are tightly packed together, researchers believe that it must be crystalline in nature, making it effectively a giant celestial diamond.
"The evolutionary history and amazing density of the planet all suggest it is comprised of carbon -- i.e., a massive diamond orbiting a neutron star every two hours in an orbit so tight it would fit inside our own Sun," said Bailes.
Researchers said the planet is also likely to have oxygen apart from carbon. Because of its high density, scientists think that lighter elements like hydrogen and helium are not present in the planet.
Astronomers say that the arrival times of the pulses were systematically modulated due to the gravitational pull of a small companion planet, orbiting the pulsar in a binary system.
The planet orbits the pulsar in just two hours and 10 minutes, and the distance between the two objects is 600,000 km - a little less than the radius of our Sun.
How Does Telescopes Help Scientist - News
As the star spins and the radio beam sweeps repeatedly over Earth, radio telescopes detect a regular pattern of radio pulses. Irregular movements in the beams clued scientists in that there was a companion planet orbiting the pulsar, which then led
Astronomy buffs, hold onto your telescopes. Scientists have discovered a new supernova, or exploding star, in the Pinwheel Galaxy. And, in a few weeks, you might be able to see it for yourself with nothing but a good pair of binoculars.
The Hubble Space Telescope has helped expand our knowledge of the universe. It helped scientists estimate that the universe began about fourteen billion years ago. Earlier estimates had placed it between ten and twenty billion years old.
"Every extra penny will make it harder to get funded in the current budgetary climate," notes Turner. "The lack of transparency by NASA doesn't help either, but we have to do this or lose credibility as a leader in both science and space and as a
Jodie Foster, who portrayed a scientist working for the SETI Institute in the 1997 science-fiction film 'Contact,' has donated to help revive the ailing project, which was forced to close some of its radio telescopes earlier this year.
Bay Area Sports Blog » “Any astronomer
Is NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope a Time Machine?
If you could build a time machine, what would it look like? Maybe, it should look like a telescope. American scientists are building a space telescope, they hope, will look back over unimaginable distances and time to show the universe close to its beginning.
But this distant past will mainly be seen in infrared light. Visible light is just one form of radiation. Today, telescopes take pictures using forms of light hidden from the human eye.
The American space agency, NASA, is now building the largest space telescope ever. The James Webb Space Telescope, named after NASA’s second director, will have a mirror seven times the size of the Hubble Space Telescope.
But it will mainly study the universe in infrared light. We usually experience infrared light as heat. But, if you have ever used a TV remote control, you know there are many uses for it.
The James Webb Space Telescope is a complex engineering project. It will be huge — about the size of a passenger jet. And it will have to be super-cooled. Because the telescope studies infrared heat, its mirror must be kept very close to absolute zero. That is minus two hundred seventy-three degrees Celsius.
NASA is building the Webb telescope at the Goddard Space Center, outside Washington DC. The agency hopes to launch it in twenty-fourteen.
Jonathan Gardner is a project scientist for the telescope. We asked him how the device can look back in time.
JONATHAN GARNER: “We can see back in time because light takes time to get from there to here. So, as we look further and further away, it takes longer and longer for the light to get from where it’s emitted to here and we can actually see backwards in time.
And if you look far enough, you start to approach the event scientists believe gave birth to everything.
JONATHAN GARNER: “We’re looking (at the universe when it was much younger and we’re looking) back most of the way to the Big Bang.
How Does Telescopes Help Scientist - Bookshelf
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