[▲An imaginary illustration of neutron stars merging to cause an explosive phenomenon called “Kironova” (Credit: NASA, ESA, J. Olmsted (STScI))]
A research group led by Eve Chase of Los Alamos National Laboratory, USA,The space telescope “Nancy Grace Roman” (herefollowing, “Roman Telescope”) under development is ideal for the discovery of “kilonova”published a paper.The Roman Telescope was created by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).May 2027A space telescope scheduled to be launched on
Kilonova, which is difficult to discover with existing telescopes
A kilonova is an explosive phenomenon that occurs when neutron stars left behind by massive stars that have exploded supernova collide with each other.That’s what I mean.Despite having a mass close to that of the Sun, the diameter is10kmWhen these high-density neutron stars, which are said to be only regarding 6 miles apart, merge together, they form gold, platinum, and strontium.heavy elements are producedwill be The heavy elements produced by Kilonova areForming the crust of future Earth-like rocky planetsIt is believed that
Kilonova, a theoretical phenomenon, was first observed inAugust 17, 2017That’s what I was talking regarding.American gravitational wave telescope「LIGO」and European gravitational wave telescopes「Virgo」but,About 130 million light-yearsGravitational waves from far away「GW170817」After regarding 1.7 seconds following detectingGamma-ray space telescope “Fermi”is the emission phenomenon of high-energy electromagnetic waves“Gamma ray burst”detected. Furthermore, as a result of follow-up observations with NASA’s “Hubble” Space Telescope, etc.,Fading glow of diffusing debris following explosionwas captured.
However, it is believed that more kilonova are occurring in more distant universes, and GW170817, which occurred 130 million light years away, which is astronomically close, is not necessarily a representative example of kilonova. maybe not. Daniel Scolnic of Durham University, UK,“It remains unclear how often kilonovae occur and in which galaxies, whether the kilonova we have detected is typical, and how bright the explosions are.”said.
Chase’s research group includes not only existing telescopes but also telescopes to be built and launched in the future.A total of 13 wide-field observation instrumentsWe examined whether kilonova can detect .
The research group assumes a case where neutron stars, or a neutron star and a black hole, which are candidates for kilonova, are first detected as gravitational waves by LIGO, Virgo, and Japan’s gravitational wave telescope “KAGRA”. The simulation was carried out assuming that following the wave detection, a follow-up observation is performed with a wide-field observation device. As a result, it was concluded that the Roman telescope would detect kilonova with high probability.
[▲ Image of kilonova detection by the Roman Space Telescope (Credit: Space Telescope Science Institute)]
The expansion of the universe is said to be one of the reasons why the Roman Telescope is a powerful tool for discovering kilonova. Light (visible light) emitted from celestial bodies that existed billions of years ago becomes longer in wavelength as it travels through the expanding universe, so it is observed as infrared rays on Earth (cosmological declination). The Roman Telescope is a telescope specialized in near-infrared detection,regarding 7 billion light yearsIt is said that it will be able to detect kilonova emitted from afar.
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Also, the Roman Telescope specializes in observingAnother advantage of near-infraredThere seems to be Kilonova emits electromagnetic waves of various wavelengths,gamma raysteeth‘Short gamma-ray bursts’ lasting less than 2 secondsis emitted asUV and visible lightteeth1 to 2 daysIt will not be possible to detect it withnear infraredis even following neutron stars merge1 week or moreIt is said to be observable.According to the research group, the Roman telescope will be used following the merger of neutron stars.2 weeks or moreIt is expected to be observable for some time.
Once observations by the Roman Telescope begin, it is expected that we will be able to obtain a large amount of statistical information, such as where and how often kilonova events occur. Scolnic regarding the Roman Telescope“The physics of explosive phenomena[such as kilonova]will begin to advance statistical studies[such as the frequency of kilonova occurrences]along with a great deal of new analysis.”I have high hopes.
Source
- Image Credit: NASA, ESA, J. Olmsted (STScI)
- NASA – How NASA’s Roman Telescope Will Scan for Showstopping Explosions
- LIGO – GRAVITATIONAL WAVES AND GAMMA-RAYS FROM A BINARY NEUTRON STAR MERGER: GW170817 AND GRB 170817A
- doi: 10.48550/arXiv.2105.12268 – Kilonova Detectability with Wide-Field Instruments
- doi: 10.48550/arXiv.1710.05845 – How Many Kilonovae Can Be Found in Past, Present, and Future Survey Datasets?
- doi: 10.1038/nature12505 – A ‘kilonova’ associated with the short-duration γ-ray burst GRB 130603B
Text by Misato Kadono
