Magic Telescopes Find Nova Eruption From Binary Star System Than Happens Every 15 Years

Using a pair of ground-based MAGIC telescopes, astronomers have discovered a massive nova explosion caused by a couple of stars in the Serpent Bearer constellation known as RS Ophiuchi or RS Oph.

Scientists attempting to solve the enigma of cosmic rays now have a new path of investigation thanks to close observations of the stunning occurrence.

The findings were published in the journal Nature Astronomy. The study title is "Proton Acceleration in Thermonuclear Nova Explosions Revealed by Gamma Rays."

RS Opiuchi Nova Explosion Throughout The Years

Aside from last year's sighting, astronomers have seen the RS Opiuchi nova occur in 1898, 1907, 1933, 1945, 1958, 1967, 1985, and 2006.

The MAGIC (Major Atmospheric Gamma Imaging Cherenkov) telescopes in the Canary Islands caught the event last year, allowing researchers to estimate the explosion's radiation to be 250 gigaelectronvolts - a hundred billion times more intense than a typical visible light beam.

After the first signals that it was likely to blow, the MAGIC team had to swiftly aim their telescopes towards RS Opiuchi, demonstrating the technology's speedy deployability.

David Green, a co-author of the paper from the Max Planck Institute for Physics, said in a statement: "The spectacular eruption of the RS Ophiuchi shows that the MAGIC telescopes' fast response really pays off: It takes them no more than 30 seconds to move to a new target."

Nova Explained

According to The University of Texas at Austin's McDonald's Observatory's StarDate (via ABP Live), a nova is an explosion from the surface of a white dwarf star in a binary star system that occurs when the white dwarf "steals" gas from its close partner star. A white dwarf is the dense core of a formerly normal star.

When enough pressure builds up on the white dwarf's surface, it explodes.

As a result, nova birthplaces are systems where two significantly dissimilar stars coexist in a parasitic relationship.

A white dwarf, a tiny, burned-out, and extremely dense star, circles a red giant, an ancient star that will soon burn up in this relationship. A teaspoon of the substance of a white dwarf weighs nearly a tonne.

The massive thermonuclear explosion of a white dwarf in the Serpent Bearer constellation has been detected by MAGIC (Major Atmospheric Gamma Imaging Cherenkov Telescopes), a system of two telescopes located at the Roque de Los Muchachos Observatory on La Palma.

What Researchers Found

Several shock fronts spread through the stellar wind from the Red Giant and the interstellar medium that surrounded the binary system after the explosion.

These shock waves act like a massive power plant, accelerating particles to near-light speeds.

Daily Mail said the gamma rays are thought to emanate from powerful protons, which are the nuclei of hydrogen atoms, according to a combination of observations made by Earth-based telescopes.

Supernova remnants are the main actors in cosmic rays. Compared to novae, the shock fronts formed by stellar explosions are significantly more powerful.

More observations like RS Ophiuchi will be required to completely comprehend the intricate interplay of violent events with the interstellar medium in the Milky Way.

According to the researchers, the MAGIC partnership will continue to search for 'restless' objects in our Galaxy and beyond.

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