Email a Friend
Printer Friendly
Slashdot It!
Submit to Reddit
Add to Facebook

MSU contributes to new research on star formation

January 25, 2010

EAST LANSING, Mich. - "Crazy" and "cool" are two of the words Michigan State University astronomer Megan Donahue uses to describe the two distinct "tails" found on a long tail of gas that is believed to be forming stars where few stars have been formed before.

Donahue was part of an international team of astronomers that viewed the gas tail with a very long, new observation made by the Chandra X-ray Observatory and detailed it in a paper published this month in the publication Astrophysical Journal.

"The double tail is very cool - that is, interesting - and ridiculously hard to explain," said Donahue, a professor in MSU's Department of Physics and Astronomy. "It could be two different sources of gas or something to do with magnetic fields. We just don't know."

What is also unusual is the gas tail, which is more than 200,000 light years in length, extends well outside any galaxy. It is within objects such as this that new stars are formed, but usually within the confines of a galaxy.

"This system is really crazy because where we're seeing the star formation is well away from any galaxy," Donahue said. "Star formation happens primarily in the disks of galaxies. What we're seeing here is very unexpected."

This gas tail was originally spotted by astronomers three years ago using a multitude of telescopes, including NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and the SOuthern Astrophysical Research telescope, a Chilean-based observatory in which MSU is one of the partners. The new observations show a second tail, and a fellow galaxy, ESO 137-002, that also has a tail of hot X-ray-emitting gas.

How these newly formed stars came to be in this particular place remains a mystery as well. Astronomers theorize this gas tail might have "pulled" star-making material from nearby gases, creating what some have called "orphan stars."

"This system continues to surprise us as we get better observations of it," Donahue said.

The gas tail is located in the southern hemisphere near a constellation called Triangulum Australe, in a giant cluster of galaxies called Abell 3627. It is associated with a galaxy known as ESO 137-001 which is about 219 million light years from our own Milky Way Galaxy.

Star formation is a continuous process throughout the universe, where there are estimated to be billions of galaxies, each of which contains billions of stars. Stars are formed from clouds of dusty, cool, dense molecular gas. Molecular gas clouds prefer to inhabit galaxies, particularly the disks of galaxies like the Milky Way.

Our sun, a star located within the Milky Way Galaxy, is an average-size star estimated to be about 4.6 billion years old.

###

Michigan State University has been advancing knowledge and transforming lives through innovative teaching, research and outreach for more than 150 years. MSU is known internationally as a major public university with global reach and extraordinary impact. Its 17 degree-granting colleges attract scholars worldwide who are interested in combining education with practical problem solving.

Michigan State University

Related Star Formation Current Events and Star Formation News Articles

Star Formation Current Events and Star Formation News RSS

Herschel: The first science highlights
Astronomy & Astrophysics is publishing a special feature devoted to the first science results obtained with Herschel, an ESA space observatory with science instruments provided by European-led Principal Investigator consortia and with important participation from NASA.

Newborn Stars Discovered in Dark Cosmic Cloud
A wave of massive star formation appears poised to begin within a mysterious, dark cloud in the Milky Way.

Hubble captures bubbles and baby stars
A spectacular new NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image - one of the largest ever released of a star-forming region - highlights N11, part of a complex network of gas clouds and star clusters within our neighbouring galaxy, the Large Magellanic Cloud. This region of energetic star formation is one of the most active in the nearby Universe.

Astronomers Witness a Star Being Born
Astronomers have glimpsed what could be the youngest known star at the very moment it is being born. Not yet fully developed into a true star, the object is in the earliest stages of star formation and has just begun pulling in matter from a surrounding envelope of gas and dust, according to a new study that appears in the current issue of the Astrophysical Journal.

Bursting 'bubbles' the origin of galactic gas clouds
Like bubbles bursting on the surface of a glass of champagne, 'bubbles' in our Galaxy burst and leave flecks of material in the form of clouds of hydrogen gas, researchers using CSIRO's Parkes telescope.

NASA's Swift Catches 500th Gamma-ray Burst
In its first five years in orbit, NASA's Swift satellite has given astronomers more than they could have hoped for. Its discoveries range from a nearby nascent supernova to a blast so far away that it happened when our universe was only 5 percent of its present age.

The Light and Dark Face of a Star-Forming Nebula
Today, ESO is unveiling an image of the little known Gum 19, a faint nebula that, in the infrared, appears dark on one half and bright on the other. On one side hot hydrogen gas is illuminated by a supergiant blue star called V391 Velorum.

After growth spurt, supermassive black holes spend half their lives veiled in dust
Supermassive black holes found at the centers of distant galaxies undergo huge growth spurts as a result of galactic collisions, according to a new study by astronomers at Yale University and the University of Hawaii. Their findings appear in the March 25 edition of Science Express.

Astronomers get sharpest view ever of star factories in distant universe
Astronomers have combined a natural gravitational lens and a sophisticated telescope array to get the sharpest view ever of "star factories" in a galaxy over 10 billion light-years from Earth.

Early galaxy went through 'teenage growth spurt,' scientists say
Scientists have found a massive galaxy in the early Universe creating stars like our sun up to 100 times faster than the modern-day Milky Way.

More Star Formation Current Events and Star Formation News Articles

	The Formation of Stars (Physics Textbook) by Steven W. Stahler (Author), Francesco Palla (Author) This book is a comprehensive treatment of star formation, one of the most active fields of modern astronomy. The reader is guided through the subject in a logically compelling manner. Starting from a general description of stars and interstellar clouds, the authors delineate the earliest phases of stellar evolution. They discuss formation activity not only in the Milky Way, but also in other galaxies, both now and in the remote past. Theory and observation are thoroughly integrated, with the aid of numerous figures and images. In summary, this volume is an invaluable resource, both as a text for physics and astronomy graduate students, and as a reference for professional scientists.
	Cores to Clusters: Star Formation with Next Generation Telescopes by Springer Towards the second half of this decade several major telescope facilities operating in the infrared submillimeter and millimeter wave bands will become operational. These missions are expected to throw much light on our understanding of the the star formation phenomenon, which is addressed as one of the primary science goals in these wave bands. This book is the proceedings of the "Cores to Clusters" workshop held at Centro de Astrofisica da Universidade do Porto during 7 - 9 October, 2004 to discuss current and future issues in star formation physics in the light of these Next Generation Telescopes.
	Ladies in the Star Formation Vytear Aaaa Locksmiths And Bail Bonds (Primary Contributor)
	Swirls of Gas and Dust Reside in This Ethereal-Looking Region of Star Formation , 48x72 by AllPosters.com Create a unique look on your walls with our e-usable and repositionable wall murals. Swirls of Gas and Dust Reside in This Ethereal-Looking Region of Star Formation will help you decorate in your own unique style.
	The Birth of Stars and Planets by John Bally (Author), Bo Reipurth (Author) Star formation is the fundamental cosmic process which makes galaxies visible, and regulates the evolution of normal matter in the Universe. New instruments and technologies are now enabling the exploration of fundamental cosmic processes. Scientists are beginning to understand the beauty and complexity of star and planet formation and their role in cosmic evolution. This fascinating book combines the latest astronomical images and data with descriptions of the exciting recent developments in the study of star and planet formation. The authors discuss isolated star birth in dark clouds, the formation of star clusters and nebulae, the 'ecology' of interstellar gas and dust, and the violent starbursts that may produce black holes. They relate these processes to the evolution of galaxies and...
	Star Wars Phantom Menace Ser. 1 WIDEVISION Battle Droid Formation #67 Single Trading Card by Topps Non - Sports Singles MINT
	Mead Early Learning - Stage 4, Set of Three Stage 4 Workbooks (52517) by MeadWestvaco Consumer & Office Products Learners at Mead® Writing Fundamentals Stage 4 (1st Grade and Up) are ready to write sentences and paragraphs on wide-ruled paper, however, their skills related to spacing the letters and words are not yet fully developed. Therefore, the transitional stage develops the skills necessary to space letters and adhere to margins. Also, at this stage children are beginning to learn cursive and a narrow primary paper is recommended during this process. This kit includes three items: RediSpace® Transitional Storybook Paper, RediSpace® Notebook Paper, and See and Feel™ Learn to Write with Raised Ruling. Mead® Writing Fundamentals was developed in partnership with Toni M. Schulken, MS, OTR/L, a pediatric occupational therapist, inventor, president of Pathways for Learning, Inc. (a private...
	MDP102 Men's dance pants (w85_33.5") by Star Dance USA Men's dance pants are made by Star Dance USA. They are designed for ballroom and latin dancers. The wide leg design and minor flare bottom allow dancers to enjoy freedom of movement. The heavy drape fabric provide dancers with beautiful line during dancing motion.
	Vista Point CUBA Directed By: TravelVideoStore.com Also With: TravelVideoStore.com (Producer)
	Visual Double Stars: Formation, Dynamics and Evolutionary Tracks by Springer This book contains the proceedings of the International Workshop `Visual Binary Stars: Formation, Dynamics and Evolutionary Tracks' held in Santiago de Compostela, Spain, July 29 -- August 1, 1997. The most recent observational results on visual double stars as well as on their dynamics were presented at the Workshop which had nearly 70 participants from 19 countries. Both the astrophysical data and the dynamics of visual binary stars are discussed as a background to tracing their formation and evolutionary trends, largely supported by observational results including those obtained from satellites. The book will be valuable for astronomers interested in research in both visual double and multiple star and celestial mechanics.