[mikrofon]

I didn't know DeLay was a dwarf?

[2nd Bn, 11th Mar]

"The brighter white dwarf contains about a quarter of the Sun's mass compacted into a Neptune-sized ball, while its companion has more than half the mass of the Sun and is Earth-sized."

Racist statement by Harvard astrobubbas, of all people.

[CharlyFord]

Two white dwarfs have been discovered on the brink of a merger. In just 900,000 years, material will start to stream from one star to the other (as shown in this artist's conception), beginning the process that may end with a spectacular supernova explosion. Watching these stars fall in will allow astronomers to test Einstein's theory of general relativity as well as the origin of a special class of supernovae. Credit: David A. Aguilar (CfA)

I'm offended by the racist 'black hole' remarks. Astronomers need to come up with a politically correct name, like bottomless pit. You know, like the 'War On Poverty' bottomless pit.

[cripplecreek]

Space are cool.

[ETL]

"The two white dwarfs are circling at a bracing speed of 370 miles per second (600 km/s), or 180 times faster than the fastest jet on Earth.

"I nearly fell out of my chair at the telescope when I saw one star change its speed by a staggering 750 miles per second in just a few minutes," said Smithsonian astronomer Warren Brown, lead author of the paper reporting the find."

The changing speed implies the orbit elliptical. When the pair gets close they whip past each other.

More info here:
"We have discovered a detached pair of white dwarfs (WDs) with a 12.75 min orbital period and a 1,315 km/s radial velocity amplitude. We measure the full orbital parameters of the system using its light curve, which shows ellipsoidal variations,..."
http://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode.cfm?id=stars-do-dance-of-possible-death-11-07-13

Scientific paper here (pdf file):
http://arxiv.org/PS_cache/arxiv/pdf/1107/1107.2389v1.pdf

[PreciousLiberty]

“The two white dwarfs are circling at a bracing speed of 370 miles per second (600 km/s), or 180 times faster than the fastest jet on Earth.”

I hope the scientist didn’t provide that stat - I’d guess it was the “science writer”.

Assuming the “fastest jet” can go Mach 4 (about 4400 ft/s), or .83 mi/s, 370 miles per second would be 456 times faster.

(Mach 4 is actually faster than any current publically known jet. The SR-71 Blackbird could fly about Mach 3.5.)

[rockrr]

About 900,000 years from now - a blink of an eye in astronomical time - they will merge and possibly explode as a supernova.

I'll put it on my calendar...;-)

[Jess Kitting]

About 900,000 years from now they will merge and possibly explode as a supernova. . . By watching the stars converge, scientists will test both Einstein's theory of general relativity and the origin of some peculiar supernovae.

Wow, in only 900,000 year from now? Those scientists must be waiting with baited breath!

Call me then and see if I'm still interested.

[samtheman]

Astronomers plan on watching this to the end? 900,000 years from now?