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Related: About this forumOur galaxy's youngest black hole? Could be...
The warped leftovers from a rare star explosion may be hiding the youngest black hole in our galaxy, a new study reveals.
The supernova remnant, called W49B, is about 1,000 years old as seen from Earth, and it is located about 26,000 light-years away. Scientists suspect it met an unusual demise.
"W49B is the first of its kind to be discovered in the galaxy," study lead author Laura Lopez of MIT said in a statement. "It appears its parent star ended its life in a way that most others don't." Lopez and her team unveiled a dazzling video tour of the supernova remnant during a Feb. 13 announcement.
Typically, when a star reaches the end of its life and explodes in a supernova, it shoots stellar material away from its center more or less evenly in all directions, creating a relatively symmetrical cosmic object.
more
http://science.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/19/17018704-our-galaxys-youngest-black-hole-could-be?lite
Supernovas tend to leave behind an extremely dense spinning core called a neutron star, which often can be detected through X-ray or radio pulses. But scientists using data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory found no evidence for a neutron star, which makes them believe a black hole might have formed in the supernova instead.
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Our galaxy's youngest black hole? Could be... (Original Post)
n2doc
Feb 2013
OP
Fantastic Anarchist
(7,309 posts)1. Very cool ...
... however, it was poorly worded until I got to this part:
At just 1,000 years old (not including light travel time), this could be the youngest black hole formed in our Milky Way galaxy, scientists say.
At first, I was thinking, how could it be only 1,000 years old if it's 26,000 light-years away - until I got to the above sentence.
I'm glad they clarified that or my head would have exploded trying to resolve the inconsistency.
sakabatou
(42,176 posts)2. I'm still confused by it.
Fantastic Anarchist
(7,309 posts)3. The light has only reached the earth 1,000 years ago.
So, the earth has only been receiving the light of the supernova for 1,000 years, even though the explosion occurred 26,000 years ago.
n2doc
(47,953 posts)4. the light we see now was emitted 1,000 years after the explosion
But it took 26,000 years to get here. The actual explosion took place 26,000+1,000= 27,000 years ago.
For all we know a nearby star went nova or supernova last year, but the light hasn't reached us. Betelgeuse is a prime candidate. There may be other, 'younger' black holes that we haven't seen because their light hasn't reached us either.
sakabatou
(42,176 posts)5. That's what I thought it was
Thanks for clearing it up.
Fantastic Anarchist
(7,309 posts)6. I confused myself trying to answer you.