NASA’s NICER Telescope on ISS Captures Record-Setting X-Ray Burst
NASA has detected a massive thermonuclear explosion coming from outer space, caused by a massive thermonuclear flash on the surface of a pulsar — the crushed remains of a star that long ago exploded as a supernova.
explosion released as much energy in 20 seconds as the Sun does in nearly 10 days.
NASA’s Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) telescope on the International Space Station (ISS) detected a sudden spike of X-rays on August 20.
The X-ray burst, the brightest seen by NICER so far, came from an object named “J1808”. “J1808” is located about 11,000 light-years away in the constellation Sagittarius.
Astronomers employ a concept called the “Eddington limit”, named after English astrophysicist Sir Arthur Eddington, to describe the maximum radiation intensity a star can have before that radiation causes the star to expand.
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