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Undead galaxy cluster spews 700 zombie baby stars A YEAR
The Register ^ | 16th August 2012 11:19 GMT | Brid-Aine Parnell

Posted on 08/16/2012 10:08:59 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach

Astroboffins have spotted a galaxy cluster that's breaking all the cosmic rules, including coming back to life to spawn stars at an enormous rate.

The Phoenix cluster is spewing out the celestial bodies at the highest rate ever observed for the middle of a galaxy cluster; it's the most powerful producer of X-rays of any known cluster; it's one of the most massive of its kind; and the rate of hot gas cooling in the central regions is the largest ever observed.

According to the scientists, the cluster is "experiencing a massive starburst" that's forming the equivalent of 740 Suns every year.

“Central galaxies have typically been referred to as ‘red and dead’ - just a bunch of old stars orbiting a massive black hole, and there’s nothing new happening,” said Michael McDonald of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), lead author of a study of the cluster. “But the central galaxy in this cluster has somehow come to life, and is giving birth to prodigious numbers of new stars.”

While these "red and dead" central galaxies are effectively space graveyards, boffins have often thought they shouldn't be. That's because the hot gas in a cluster core, gathered from nearby galaxies and supernova explosions, should cool over time and condense to form new stars.

But scientists have never before spotted a cluster that's cooling at a rate to achieve star birth. In typical stellar formations, something prevents the gas from chilling, and one explanation suggests there is a supermassive black hole emitting enough particles to reheat the core.

“What’s interesting about the Phoenix cluster is that we see almost all the cooling that was predicted,” McDonald said. “It could be that this is earlier in the evolution where there’s nothing stopping it, so it cools and becomes a starburst. In fact, there are few things forming stars in the universe faster than this galaxy.”

The starburst at the centre of the Phoenix galaxy cluster

Phoenix cluster starburst

The Phoenix cluster was first spied in 2010 by the South Pole Telescope (SPT), but the boffins have now used NASA's Chandra X-Ray Observatory - a space telescope - to look at all the large clusters the SPT had found to measure their X-ray strength. Once they saw that the Phoenix was by far the brightest cluster, the researchers used ten different telescopes on Earth and in space to figure out its features.

Although the Phoenix also has a black hole at its centre, the gas is still cooling to form stars.

"The supermassive black hole lurking in the galaxy's nucleus seems to be asleep at the switch,” Brian McNamara, professor of astrophysics at the University of Waterloo, said. “But once the black hole gets going and begins to push the hot atmosphere aside, perhaps in another 100 million years or so, it should shut down cooling and reduce the star formation rate in a feedback process that is active in most galaxy clusters.”

He added that the Phoenix could be an example of how the most massive primeval galaxies formed.

The study was published in Nature. ®


TOPICS: Astronomy; Science
KEYWORDS: astronomy; galaxies; phoenixcluster; science; space; starfactory; stars; stringtheory; xplanets

1 posted on 08/16/2012 10:09:03 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
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To: SunkenCiv

fyi


2 posted on 08/16/2012 10:10:15 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach ((The Global Warming Hoax was a Criminal Act....where is Al Gore?))
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

Is this where black holes expell their items?


3 posted on 08/16/2012 10:12:11 AM PDT by bmwcyle (Corollary - Electing the same person over and over and expecting a different outcome is insanity)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach; RandallFlagg; Darksheare

In before Darksheare’s Fault!


4 posted on 08/16/2012 10:13:04 AM PDT by null and void (Day 1305 of our ObamaVacation from reality - Heroes aren't made Frank, they're cornered...)
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To: null and void

LOL!
In before I denied it.


5 posted on 08/16/2012 10:22:12 AM PDT by Darksheare (Try my coffee, first one's free.....)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach
The other side of an inter-dimensional black hole?

LLS

6 posted on 08/16/2012 10:22:30 AM PDT by LibLieSlayer (Sarah speaking at the romney convention would be like Led Zeppelin opening for The Monkees)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

IF these guys are surprised, maybe they didn’t know as much as would have us think they do.


7 posted on 08/16/2012 10:23:57 AM PDT by Pecos ("We hold these truths to be self-evident ..... ")
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

Should we be applying SPF 15 sunblock for the next few thousand years?


8 posted on 08/16/2012 10:42:05 AM PDT by Tar and Feathers (http://tarandfeathersusa.wordpress.com/)
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To: Tar and Feathers

Just stay out of the sunlight more...that should help.


9 posted on 08/16/2012 10:58:02 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach ((The Global Warming Hoax was a Criminal Act....where is Al Gore?))
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

I knew it, Zombies come from stardust.


10 posted on 08/16/2012 11:07:10 AM PDT by Doomonyou (Let them eat Lead.)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

From the headline, I thought it was an article about Nancy Pelosi’s head.


11 posted on 08/16/2012 11:40:53 AM PDT by DPMD
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To: DPMD

LOL!


12 posted on 08/16/2012 11:46:32 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach ((The Global Warming Hoax was a Criminal Act....where is Al Gore?))
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To: KevinDavis; annie laurie; Knitting A Conundrum; Viking2002; Ernest_at_the_Beach; Mmogamer; ...
Thanks Ernest.
 
X-Planets
· join · view topics · view or post blog · bookmark · " target="x" title="post a new topic">post new topic · subscribe ·
Google news searches: exoplanet · exosolar · extrasolar ·

13 posted on 08/16/2012 3:26:40 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach; Captain Beyond; AdmSmith; bvw; callisto; ckilmer; dandelion; ganeshpuri89; ...

Thanks Ernest_at_the_Beach.

· String Theory Ping List ·
721 posted on 04/24/2007 8:14:42 PM PDT by DocRock
· Join · Bookmark · Topics · Google ·
· View or Post in 'blog · post a topic · subscribe ·


14 posted on 08/16/2012 3:28:03 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: LibLieSlayer

God showing us “How I Did It?”


15 posted on 08/17/2012 9:18:33 AM PDT by TheOldLady
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To: SunkenCiv

The universe is tossing us the bird. LOL


16 posted on 08/17/2012 9:20:37 AM PDT by Lazamataz (I love the Universe, and it loves me.)
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To: brytlea; cripplecreek; decimon; bigheadfred; KoRn; Grammy; married21; steelyourfaith; Mmogamer; ...

Thanks Ernest_at_the_Beach, it’s an ‘extra, extra’ ping to APoD members, should have done this when it first appeared. One of two topics about this. :’)


17 posted on 08/18/2012 8:26:01 AM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: TheOldLady

I have been out of town so I just saw this. You are correct... everything we learn about the Universe screams “how GOD did it”. Amen!

LLS


18 posted on 08/20/2012 4:21:26 AM PDT by LibLieSlayer (Sarah speaking at the romney convention would be like Led Zeppelin opening for The Monkees)
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To: LibLieSlayer

Welcome home, LLS!

Amen!


19 posted on 08/20/2012 8:41:30 AM PDT by TheOldLady
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To: TheOldLady

Thank you and GOD bless!

LLS


20 posted on 08/20/2012 10:23:21 AM PDT by LibLieSlayer (Sarah speaking at the romney convention would be like Led Zeppelin opening for The Monkees)
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