File:Circinus X-1.jpg

Circinus_X-1.jpg (222 × 208 pixels, file size: 19 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg)

Summary

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English: This is Chandra's X-ray image of the neutron star in Circinus X-1. Low energy X-rays are shown in red, medium energy X-rays in green and high energies in blue. The jet itself is seen to the upper right corner and consists of two fingers of X-ray emission (shown in red) separated by about 30 degrees. These two fingers, located at least about 5 light years from the neutron star, may represent the outer walls of a wide jet. Alternatively, they may represent two separate, highly collimated jets produced at different times by a precessing neutron star. That is, the neutron star may wobble like a top as it spins and the jet fires at different angles at different times. The structures on the opposite side (red, to the lower left) may be evidence for counter jets. The rest of the colored areas surrounding the bright central source are instrumental artifacts and not representative of structures associated with Circinus X-1. The jet in Circinus X-1 is helping astronomers better understand how neutron stars, and not just black holes, can generate these powerful beams. Many jets have been found originating near black holes (both the supermassive and stellar-mass variety), but the Circinus X-1 jet is the first extended X-ray jet associated with a neutron star in a binary system. This detection shows that the unusual properties of black holes -- such as presence of an event horizon and the lack of an actual surface -- may not be required to form powerful jets. The result also reveals how efficient neutron stars can be as cosmic power factories.
Date 4 April 2010 (original upload date)
Source
Author X-ray: NASA/CXC/Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison/S.Heintz et al.; Illustration: NASA/CXC/M.Weiss

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Public domain This file is in the public domain in the United States because it was solely created by NASA. NASA copyright policy states that "NASA material is not protected by copyright unless noted". (See Template:PD-USGov, NASA copyright policy page or JPL Image Use Policy.)
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current04:19, 4 April 2010Thumbnail for version as of 04:19, 4 April 2010222 × 208 (19 KB)The High Fin Sperm Whale{{Information |Description={{en|1=This is Chandra's X-ray image of the neutron star in Circinus X-1. Low energy X-rays are shown in red, medium energy X-rays in green and high energies in blue. The jet itself is seen to the upper right corner and consists

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