X-ray binary stars. Composite image of a neutron star and normal star binary star pair known as Circinus X-1. This pair lies around 26,000 light years

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X-ray binary stars. Composite image of a neutron star and normal star binary star pair known as Circinus X-1. This pair lies around 26,000 light years from Earth, in the Milky Way galaxy and is the youngest member of an important class of objects called X-ray binaries. X-ray binaries consist of a dense object, either a black hole or a neutron star (as here), in orbit with a star like the Sun. Researchers found that the neutron star in Circinus X-1 is less than 4,600 years old, making the X-ray binary much younger than any other known in the Milky Way. This discovery allows astronomers to study a critical phase after a supernova explosion and the birth of a neutron star. Image composed of data obtained by the Chandra X-ray Observatory (blue) and

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Size: 3600px × 3600px
Photo credit: © NASA/CXC/Univ. of Wisconsin/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: -, -1, -ray, array, astronomical, astronomy, astrophysical, astrophysics, australia, binary, chandra, circinus, compact, composite, image, milky, neutron, observation, observatory, pair, space, star, starry, stars, stellar, system, telescope, xray, young, youngest