Recently, scientists at the Southern European Observatory made an astonishing discovery in space. They found a binary star system where two stars are incredibly close to each other, with their surfaces even merging. This is the largest and hottest binary star system ever observed by humans.
The largest and hottest binary star system ever discovered.
Named VFTS 352, these two stars are located approximately 160,000 light-years away from us in the Tarantula Nebula. Observers used an enormous super telescope to witness this event. Both stars are roughly equal in size, 57 times larger than the Sun. They are currently in a phase of overlap, sharing up to 30% of their materials. A “bridge” is forming and connecting their surfaces together.
Regarding this event, scientists point out that both stars belong to the O-type and emit blue-white light. Their surface temperatures exceed 40,000 degrees Celsius. Such binary star systems could be the source of oxygen formation in the universe.
At present, the centers of these two stars are only 12 million kilometers apart. Intense tidal forces created by their gravitational pull seem to be blending the materials of both stars. “VFTS 352 is the largest and hottest binary star case involving material exchange,” said Leonardo Almeida, the lead researcher from the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil. “It is an important and fascinating discovery.”
What will happen next? The hypotheses so far include two directions. First, scientists suggest that they may merge to become a supergiant star in 600,000 years. Then, this star will spin extremely fast and eventually explode. This event could produce gamma rays and have a lasting impact for up to 4 million years. It would be a rare explosion of this magnitude.
However, in an alternative scenario, the two stars may separate in the next 3 million years. They would turn into two black holes and continue to orbit each other, forming a binary black hole system. “If this happens, it is a notable point for us to explore gravitational wave data,” said Selma de Mink, a theoretical astrophysicist from the University of Amsterdam.
Nonetheless, according to the scientists in the research team at the Southern European Observatory, regardless of what happens next, this is already a rare and spectacular event in space. For them, studying it is akin to conducting a very elegant job.