AI Article Synopsis
- Magnetars are super-strongly magnetized neutron stars, and their formation is not fully understood.
- Researchers studied the binary system HD 45166 and discovered it contains a Wolf-Rayet star with a mass of 2 solar masses and a magnetic field of 43 kilogauss.
- They suggest that this Wolf-Rayet star, due to its heavy mass and strong magnetic field, will likely explode as a supernova and leave behind a magnetar remnant, possibly formed from the merger of two smaller helium stars.
Article Abstract
Magnetars are highly magnetized neutron stars, the formation mechanism of which is unknown. Hot helium-rich stars with spectra dominated by emission lines are known as Wolf-Rayet stars. We observed the binary system HD 45166 using spectropolarimetry and reanalyzed its orbit using archival data. We found that the system contains a Wolf-Rayet star with a mass of 2 solar masses and a magnetic field of 43 kilogauss. Stellar evolution calculations indicate that this component will explode as a supernova, and that its magnetic field is strong enough for the supernova to leave a magnetar remnant. We propose that the magnetized Wolf-Rayet star formed by the merger of two lower-mass helium stars.
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.ade3293 | DOI Listing |
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