Why in the News?
NASA has released an image of a fractured structure in the Milky Way’s galactic centre. The feature, named G359.13, was captured using X-ray data from Chandra and radio data from South Africa’s MeerKAT array.
What is G359.13?
- G359.13 is a long, linear structure near the centre of the Milky Way.
- It is often referred to as a cosmic bone due to its shape and density.
- It stretches about 230 light-years in length, making it one of the longest and brightest features of its kind in the galaxy.
- It lies about 26,000 light-years from Earth, close to the Milky Way’s centre.
- For context, over 800 stars exist within a radius of 230 light-years from Earth—the same length as this cosmic bone.
New Discovery: A Fracture in G359.13
- Astronomers identified a distinct break or fracture in the structure’s continuous body.
- An X-ray and radio source was also detected precisely at the location of the fracture.
- Scientists believe a pulsar—a magnetised, rotating neutron star—collided with G359.13.
- The pulsar was likely moving at a speed of 1–2 million miles per hour at the time of impact.
- The collision disrupted the structure, creating a visible fracture.
Back2Basics: What is a Pulsar?
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| [UPSC 2003] The time taken by the sun to revolve around the centre of our galaxy is
Options: (a) 25 million years (b) 100 million years (c) 250 million years* (d) 500 million years |
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