Astronomers first conducted unique observations of powerful energy emission from the magnetar - an extremely dense neutron star with the most powerful magnetic field in the universe. The study is published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, Space reports.
It is a magnetar 1E 1841-045, which is at a distance of 28,000 light years from the Earth, in the center of the supernova KES 73. With the help of space X-ray Telescope IXPE, scientists for the first time measured the polarization of X-rays emerging from the star in the phase of the active flash.
Magnetaries are a kind of neutron stars formed after the explosion of a massive star. Their diameter is only about 20 km, but the mass is about twice the sun. Due to the extraordinary density, a teaspoon of the magnetar substance would weigh more than 10 trillion tons. The peculiarity of magnetarians is a powerful magnetic field, which can be stronger than the earthly trillion. According to scientists, if such a star was only 1000 km from the ground, its magnetic activity would break the bodies of people into atoms. During the period of activity 1E 1841-045, a powerful stream of X-ray radiation was thrown. With the help of IXPE, astronomers have first recorded that this radiation has become more and more polarized at high energy levels. This means that the light we see is "organized" under the influence of a powerful magnetic field. Such measurements will help to better understand the mechanisms of energy emissions from magnetarians, which during outbreaks can emit a thousand times more energy than at rest. The polarization of X -ray light gives the unique opportunity to look into the magnetic environment of magnetarians. This discovery provides new data to unravel the nature of their energy activity. Such information can be the key to understanding the most extreme objects in the universe.
IXPE (Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer) is a common project of the NASA and the Italian space agency, which since 2021 studies the nature of high energy in the universe by measuring the polarization of X-rays.
