Object 10 times brighter than the sun defies the laws of astrophysics

NASA has been investigating ultra-bright X-ray sources for some time, and their latest discovery has stunned the worlds of astrophysics and astronomy.

Ultra-bright X-ray sources are astronomical objects that emit enormous amounts of X-rays, normally found in distant galaxies and considered rare. They emit 10,000 times more energy than the sun.

This breaks even a concept known in astrophysics as the “Eddington Limit”, which refers to the maximum amount of radiation a star can emit without the pressure of that radiation making it unstable. The limit is determined by the relationship between the mass of the star and its luminosity, and If it exceeds this limit, the star is expected to break into many pieces.

In new observations published in The Astrophysical Journal, NASA has confirmed that one ULX in particular – designated M82 X-2 – may be exceeding the Eddington boundary. The analysis noted that ULX ejects about 9 trillion tons of material per year from a neighboring star, meaning an anomalous amount of material whose brightness exceeds the threshold.

ULX consists of neutron stars, which are the dead nuclear remnants of stars like the sun. A neutron star is so dense that the gravity on its surface is about 100 trillion times stronger than Earth’s. This means that any material drawn to the surface of the dead star will be blown away.

Scientists around the world have theories about the ULX that defy the laws of astrophysics. “Here’s the beauty of astronomy. We’re expanding our ability to study how the universe works by looking at the sky. On the other hand, we can’t really do experiments to get quick answers,” said astrophysicist and author Matteo Bachetti. of your study.