First zoomed image ever captured of a dying star outside our galaxy
For the first time, astronomers have captured a detailed image of a star outside the Milky Way, revealing surprising features. The star, WOH G64, is located about 160,000 light-years away in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a dwarf galaxy that orbits the Milky Way. The image, obtained using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI), provides insight into the final stages of the star’s life. Keiichi Ohnaka, an astronomer at Universidad Andrés Bello in Santiago, Chile, led the study, which was published Nov. 21 in Astronomy & Astrophysics.
Details of WOH G64 and its surroundings
WOH G64 is a huge star, about 1500 times larger than the Sun. It appears to be surrounded by a hazy, yellow, egg-shaped cocoon, believed to be gas and dust ejected from the star. study. The VLTI combined data from four telescopes to create the detailed image, overcoming the limitations of individual instruments. This is a significant achievement, as such observations typically require a telescope more than 100 meters wide.
The cocoon around the star is thought to form when material is ejected during the final stages of the star’s evolution. This phase provides valuable insights into how massive stars behave before potentially exploding into supernovae.
Tips for impending doom
A remarkable observation is the star’s dimming; Recent images show the star is fainter than previous observations. This suggests an increase in material ejected from the star, a possible harbinger of its death. “We see changes that could indicate the star’s transition to a supernova,” Ohnaka told Scientific news. However, this transformation is not imminent and may take 10,000 to 100,000 years.
Attempts to take a second close-up shot failed due to the star’s declining brightness. While some stars recover after such dimming phases, WOH G64 may continue to weaken, giving researchers rare clues about the evolution of stars in other galaxies.
