2023-11-28 12:00:03
A recent study led by PhD student Jonathan Dodd and Professor René Oudmaijer of the University of Leeds might revolutionize our understanding of Be stars, a subgroup of B stars, among the most common in the Universe. Their work was published in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
Artist’s impression of a star (A star is a celestial object emitting light autonomously, similar to a…) vampire (left) stealing matter (Matter is the substance that makes up any body having a tangible reality. Its…) to its victim.
Credit: Pic credit: ESO/M. Mink Kornmesser/SE
These researchers argue that Be stars, traditionally considered binary, might in reality be part of triple systems. This discovery challenges the established theory regarding the formation of their characteristic gas disks, similar to Saturn’s rings, in our own Solar System. is a planetary system composed of a star, the…) and presenting certain gaps.
Their analyzes of data from the Gaia satellite of the European Space Agency (ESA) (in English European Space Agency : ESA) is…) showed that these particular stars might be explained by a triple system, where three bodies interact, and not two. This interaction (An interaction is an exchange of information, affects or energy between two agents within…) might lead to a migration from one of the stars to another, making a mass transfer possible (In the automotive jargon, mass transfer (often confused with charge transfer) occurs…) and generating a characteristic disk around the “vampire star”.
This phenomenon might also explain why the close companions of these Be stars are no longer visible: they would have become too small and weak to be detected following having lost a large part of their mass to the benefit of the “vampire” Be star.
This discovery might have important implications for other areas of astronomy, including our understanding of black holes, neutron stars and sources of gravitational waves.
Professor Oudmaijer emphasizes that this study offers clues to understanding the sources of gravitational waves, a field of research in physics. He adds that binarity has long been considered a common element in stellar evolution (Stellaria is a genus of annual or perennial herbaceous plants, starworts, etc.), but recent work suggests that triple systems might be much more numerous than we thought.
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