Astronomers have discovered a strange new object in the Milky Way galaxy, emitting X-rays around every 44 minutes. The object, located 15,000 light-years away, is thought to be either a highly magnetized dead star or something exotic and unknown. The discovery was made using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, which spotted the X-ray emissions by chance while focusing on a supernova remnant.
The hyperactive phase of the object, designated ASKAP J1832−091, lasted about a month, but it did not emit any noticeable X-rays outside of that period. This suggests that more objects like this may be out there, and scientists believe studying them could reveal new information or deepen existing mysteries.
Lead author Ziteng Andy Wang said, “While our discovery doesn’t yet solve the mystery of what these objects are… studying them brings us closer to two possibilities.” The object’s unusual behavior has sparked excitement among astronomers, who hope that further research will uncover more about this mysterious phenomenon.
Source: https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/astronomers-discover-strange-new-celestial-object-milky-galaxy-122269874