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Beautiful Supernova Remnant May Contain Galaxy's Youngest Black HoleQuicklink submitted by Kyle McDermott Permalink,
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 The dying pangs of a massive star may have given rise to the galaxy’s most recent black hole and produced the first supernova remnant of its kind ever spotted in the Milky Way. by Wired.com |
Most supernova remnants are symmetrical, bursting outward in an ever-expanding bubble. W49B looks more like a punctured balloon than a nice sphere, suggesting it has an unusual origin. Astronomers speculate that for some reason the dying star that gave rise to W49B shot off material near its poles at a much higher speed than from elsewhere on its surface. These would have manifested as enormous jets that cleared away material, producing the barrel shape seen now. Using data from NASA's Chandra X-ray space telescope, researchers found asymmetric levels of different elements within the remnant. For instance, only half of it showed concentrations of iron while sulfur and silicon were spread evenly throughout. This type of explosion, known as a bipolar supernova, has never been seen before in the galaxy. |
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