Scientists Discover Rare Double-Star System with One Star Inside Another

Fast summary

• Astronomers have perhaps discovered a rare binary star system where one star previously orbited inside its partner.
• The system includes pulsar PSR J1928+1815, located about 455 light-years from Earth, paired with a helium star (1 to 1.6 times the sunS mass).
• Using China’s Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST), researchers found these stars are approximately 700,000 miles apart and complete an orbit in just 3.6 hours.
• PSR J1928+1815 is classified as a millisecond pulsar, spinning nearly 100 times per second after siphoning material from its companion.
• Computer models reveal that this binary likely went through a “common envelope” phase when the pulsar orbited within the helium star’s outer layers. This phase lasted ~1,000 years before forming their current tightly bound state.
• Only 16 to 84 such systems may exist in the Milky Way amidst its estimated total of up to 400 billion stars.
• Findings were published in Science journal on May 22.

image:
An illustration depicts two glowing stars orbiting closely within a binary system. (NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Chris Smith)

Indian opinion Analysis

This revelation highlights important advancements in astronomy, with potential implications for our understanding of stellar evolution and exotic binary systems worldwide-including contributions by space observatories like FAST in china. Rare binaries such as PSR J1928+1815 provide unique insights into phenomena like “common envelope” phases and neutron star behavior. For India’s burgeoning space research sector-exemplified by ISRO’s growing interest in astrophysics-such findings encourage collaborative international efforts using advanced telescopes and computational modeling techniques.

Considering India’s ambition to expand its space exploration capacities via projects like the Astrosat satellite observatory or collaborations under Gaganyaan, developing expertise in studying dense objects like pulsars could open gateways for breakthrough discoveries about our galaxy’s dynamics-and inspire further investment into cutting-edge infrastructure similar to FAST.

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