Dust rings from gamma-ray burst 221009A, XMM-Newton image
XMM-Newton image of dust rings from gamma-ray burst 221009A, observed two and five days after it exploded. This gamma-ray burst was observed on the 9th October 2022 and was located in the direction of the Sagitta constellation, approximately 2 billion light-years away. It was the brightest gamma-ray burst ever seen. Gamma-ray bursts are high energy explosions that occur during the collapse of a massive star. X-rays emitted from this blast illuminated dust clouds in our galaxy. The innermost ring seen here is from dust at a distance of 61,000 light-years from Earth and the outermost ring is at a distance of 1,300 light-years. This illumination has allowed scientists to determine the properties of these dust grains, suggesting they're composed of graphite.
Size: 2500px × 2500px
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Photo credit: © XMM-Newton/M. Rigoselli (INAF)/EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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