US EditionRainbow Discovered Around a Nearby Dead Star Puzzles Scientists
Astronomers observed a glowing bow shock around white dwarf RXJ0528+2838 with no disc or outflow, suggesting a strong magnetic field may drive material transfer from its companion star.
- Published Monday in Nature Astronomy, astronomers using the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope detected a bright bow shock around the white dwarf RXJ0528+2838.
- Located about 730 light-years away, the white dwarf RXJ0528+2838 orbits a Sun-like companion star but recently shows no sign of a disc.
- Imaging and composition analysis indicate the VLT maps reveal a bright, multicolored bow shock glowing red, green and blue, confirming it originates from the binary star system.
- Researchers say the results point to a strong magnetic field channeling material from the companion star onto the white dwarf, but authors caution the theory still needs work to explain the outflow.
- This finding suggests the outflow has persisted for at least 1,000 years and challenges the standard picture of matter movement, prompting follow-up interest from the astronomical community.
16 Articles
16 Articles
A Zombie Star Blows A Magnetic Wind
Gas and dust flowing from stars can, under the right conditions, clash with a star's surroundings and create a shock wave. Now, astronomers using the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (ESO's VLT) have imaged a beautiful shock wave around a dead star—a discovery that has left them puzzled. According to all known mechanisms, the small, dead star RXJ0528+2838 should not have such a structure around it. This discovery, as enigmati…
Space breakthrough as mysterious shockwave discovered around dead star for first time in history
A mysterious shockwave has been discovered around a dead star for the first time in history.With images taken by Muse, an instrument on ESO's Very Large Telescope, the dead star RXJ0528+2838 can be seen with shockwaves around it.A star dies when the core runs out of nuclear fuel, destabilising the outward pressure to balance its inward gravity.As for a white dwarf, as RXJ0528+2838 is, it describes the core left behind after a star has died. TREN…
The observations that an international group of scientists have made of a dying star have shown the unexpected existence of a curved arc of gas that travels under pressure from the advance of the star, a phenomenon that astronomers call bow wave (in reference to its forward position).Continue reading...
Astronomers spot an ‘impossible’ shock wave around a dead star system
Astronomers at Durham University and collaborators at the University of Warwick used the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope to spot something that should not exist: a bright bow-shaped shock wave wrapped around a compact dead star system called RXJ0528+2838. The finding suggests this tiny stellar remnant is pushing material into space far more strongly than current models allow. “We found something never seen before and, more i…
EarthSky
Strange shock wave around dead star surprises astronomers
The inset image shows dead star RXJ0528+2838 creating a shock wave as it moves through space. A strong outflow expelled from a star is usually the cause of such a shock wave. However, in the case of RXJ0528+2838, astronomers discovered that the shock wave can’t be explained by any known mechanism. Image via ESO/ K. Ilkiewicz and S. Scaringi et al./ PanSTARRS. ESO published this original story on January 12, 2026. Edits by EarthSky. EarthSky’s 20…
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