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Giant star caught swallowing three planets
New Scientist ^ | 09/17/03 | Emma Young

Posted on 09/17/2003 7:27:05 AM PDT by bedolido

A giant star has been caught in the act of swallowing three planets, one after the other, with each "meal" accompanied by a massive eruption.

"It has been suggested in the past that stars might engulf planets in this way, but we believe we have actually caught this action for the first time," says Alon Retter of the University of Sydney, Australia.

The star, known as V838 Monocerotis, is about 20,000 light years from Earth. In January 2002, it temporarily became the brightest star in the Milky Way, 600,000 times more luminous than the Sun. At the time, astronomers struggled to explain the spectacular explosion.

Retter and colleague Ariel Marom believe their new analysis of light emissions from the star indicates that it was a red giant that expanded and successively swallowed three relatively massive planets in quick succession. The time between the first and the last engulfment was only about two months.

"In principle, that explanation seems OK," says John Lattanzio, director of the Centre for Stellar and Planetary Astrophysics at Monash University. But he says the star was too hot to have been a red giant. "It was probably one that was on its way there - that could fit the parameters."

Existing models of what will happen when our Sun expands to become a red giant, in about one billion years, suggest that Venus and Mercury will both be engulfed. The likely fate of the Earth is unclear. "Our work suggests that once one planet is engulfed, there is an eruption, and then further expansion - so it might suggest that Earth will indeed be swallowed. But this will need to be checked carefully with the models," Retter says.

Twin peaks

The light analysed from V838 Monocerotis shows that after a short but gradual decline in luminosity following January's outburst, the star suddenly increased in brightness again in early February. The phenomenon was repeated a third time in March.

Retter and Marom found that each of the three maximum peaks in brightness were followed by secondary, weaker peaks. This repeating pattern suggests each event had the same cause, says Retter. The data also reveals the presence of large amounts of lithium and barium, which astronomers had proposed might indicate that a star had swallowed a planet.

Initially it was suggested that the first explosion was some kind of nova outburst, but this was hard to match to the observations. Other researchers suggested that two stars had collided.

"But again, this cannot explain the complicated light curve," Retter says "Our explanation, that the star swallowed three planets, fits all the observational features of the star."

Retter and Marom describe their analysis in a letter accepted by the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

Emma Young, Sydney


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Extended News; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: giant; kathybates; planets; star; swallowing; three
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To: bedolido
Is it conceivable that our sun could even swallow Uranus?

(well SOMEONE had to bring it up ;-)

41 posted on 09/17/2003 9:39:57 AM PDT by SteveH ((Can't we all just GET ALONG!?! ;-))
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To: bedolido
star burp bump
42 posted on 09/17/2003 10:14:51 AM PDT by dinasour
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To: Howlin; Ed_NYC; MonroeDNA; widgysoft; Springman; Timesink; dubyaismypresident; Grani; coug97; ...
Makes us look very insignificant in the overall scheme of Creation, indeed. More proof that God is good.

Just damn.

If you want on the new list, FReepmail me. This IS a high-volume PING list...

43 posted on 09/17/2003 10:16:49 AM PDT by mhking (Laugh while you can, monkey boy...)
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To: TXnMA
a great "S"

Tnx for pointing that out. The image was split arbitrarily right along the galactic plane. I was kind of wondering where the other half of the Milky Way was, and there it is wrapped around the edge of the image.

44 posted on 09/17/2003 10:19:57 AM PDT by RightWhale (Repeal the Law of the Excluded Middle)
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To: bedolido
The star, known as V838 Monocerotis

I thought Monocerotis V838 was the virus that went around last winter?

So9

45 posted on 09/17/2003 10:21:10 AM PDT by Servant of the 9 (The Alpha and the Numeric)
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To: bedolido
The data also reveals the presence of large amounts of lithium and barium,...

Indicates a relatively calm star undergoing a bowel examination.

46 posted on 09/17/2003 10:23:42 AM PDT by Doctor Stochastic (Vegetabilisch = chaotisch is der Charakter der Modernen. - Friedrich Schlegel)
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To: bedolido
What did Bush know, and when did he know it!

It is obvious that his administration must be fired for allowing this to happen over 40,000 years ago!

47 posted on 09/17/2003 10:25:45 AM PDT by Redleg Duke (Stir the pot...don't let anything settle to the bottom where the lawyers can feed off of it!)
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To: bedolido
Giant Star Caught Swallowing Three Planets - Minorities and Women Hurt Most

Surprised nobody posted this yet.

48 posted on 09/17/2003 10:25:53 AM PDT by Night Hides Not
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To: bedolido
What did Bush know, and when did he know it!

It is obvious that his administration must be fired for allowing this to happen over 40,000 years ago!

49 posted on 09/17/2003 10:26:34 AM PDT by Redleg Duke (Stir the pot...don't let anything settle to the bottom where the lawyers can feed off of it!)
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To: bedolido
remind me of the birth of my four children... without the annoying screaming from my wife

I hope that your wife is not a freeper. Oh, four children. She's too busy to freep!

50 posted on 09/17/2003 10:28:24 AM PDT by twigs
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To: Damocles
she seems to have engulfed many planets.
51 posted on 09/17/2003 10:30:17 AM PDT by steve8714 (radical, not conservative)
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To: bedolido
Existing models of what will happen when our Sun expands to become a red giant, in about one billion years, suggest that Venus and Mercury will both be engulfed. The likely fate of the Earth is unclear

I'll go out on a limb and say that when our Sun runs out of hydrogen, enters the red giant stage, and engulfs Mercury and Venus, we're f/ked.

52 posted on 09/17/2003 10:31:27 AM PDT by Mr. Mojo
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To: Mr. Mojo
Existing models of what will happen when our Sun expands to become a red giant, in about one billion years, suggest that Venus and Mercury will both be engulfed. The likely fate of the Earth is unclear.

Democrats are probably outraged that the Bush administration hasn't created a program to deal with this. After all, we're only talking about a thousand millenia before the unthinkable happens.

I'm no scientist, but if Venus and Mercury are both engulfed, we'll have some real global warming to deal with!

53 posted on 09/17/2003 10:41:01 AM PDT by Night Hides Not
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To: bedolido
To everybody here: WOW! What great wit and humor.

;-) ;-) ;-)

Boy, I haven't seen the likes of this since the old days at the Atlantic Monthly web forum.

You know that entire galaxies gobble each other up too. I wonder what the surgeon general would have to say about that kind of gluttony?
54 posted on 09/17/2003 11:13:57 AM PDT by RangerHobbit (I ar a publik skool gradgeet an im not stoopit)
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To: All
There was a thread the other day discussing the fact that there are too many comets if the Universe is umpteen billion years old.

Scientists can't figure out where new ones come from.

This article provides the answer.

HEre is the other thread :comets

55 posted on 09/17/2003 11:28:34 AM PDT by UCANSEE2
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To: Consort
Monocerotis bit my sister once
56 posted on 09/17/2003 11:30:11 AM PDT by talleyman (Moose lips sink ships)
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To: TXnMA; Rodney King
I guess what you are saying is that the universe is so vast that we aren't as significant as many think we are.

I reach the opposite conclusion, i.e., that the entire vastness of the universe is the stage which exists for the purpose of providing a physical location for the story of humanity to play out, and that its very vastness is indicative of how important the human struggle is. Which makes sense from a Christian perspective (to me at least) because if God thought mankind was important enough to send His Son to die for, it would not be surprising if He wanted to provide a mind-bogglingly vast universe as background for something so significant.


57 posted on 09/17/2003 12:27:04 PM PDT by Stingray51
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To: Pyro7480
April 2, 2003 APOD.

Movie time!


58 posted on 09/17/2003 12:50:02 PM PDT by petuniasevan (On my cats' Christmas wish list: Cat flap for the fridge.)
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To: bedolido
now if only i could get my wife to swallow
59 posted on 09/17/2003 12:50:50 PM PDT by holdmuhbeer
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To: TXnMA
Did you know that the APOD is reposted here on FR each day?


http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/t-apod/browse
60 posted on 09/17/2003 12:52:01 PM PDT by petuniasevan (On my cats' Christmas wish list: Cat flap for the fridge.)
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