NASA has shared an image that astronomers say is the first observation of a giant debris cloud formed by a massive collision of celestial bodies. Astronomers observed the cloud pass in front of its star and blocked its light for some time. Astronomers have long found evidence of collisions between celestial bodies. But those observations did not provide much detail, such as conflicts, the amount of material involved. This observation was new in that sense. The passing of a cloud of debris in front of a star allowed scientists to study it in detail.
Shortly after the impact they were able to determine the size of the cloud, estimate the size of the colliding objects, and see the speed at which the cloud scattered.
Most rocks and satellites, including our Earth and Moon, are formed or formed by massive collisions between celestial bodies at the beginning of the solar system. When these objects are crushed together, they can accumulate more material and increase their size or break into many smaller bodies.
Scientists have long used NASA’s retired Spitzer Space Telescope to find evidence for these types of collisions, but have been unable to extract much detail from those observations.
“Not all of the cases previously reported from Spitzer have been resolved, only theoretical hypotheses about what the actual event and the garbage cloud would have been,” said George Ryke, co-author of the new study. Published In the Journal of Astrophysics.
In 2015, astronomers led by Kate Sue of the University of Arizona began observing a 10 million year old star called HD 166191. NASA Said Over the next four years the group conducted more than 100 observations of the organization.
In 2018, the group saw the star system become brighter, which the company said was recommended to increase garbage production. In addition, a debris cloud blocks the star. They found that the cloud was very long, covering three times the area of the star. To create a large cloud, the objects in the main collision must have been the size of dwarf planets.
By 2019, the cloud was no longer visible, but the system was twice as dusty. The authors say this information will help scientists test theories of how terrestrial planets form and grow.