Astronomers using the SMARTS 1.5-meter Telescope uncover a one-in-ten-billion binary star system. Astronomers using the SMARTS 1.5-meter Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, a Program of NSF's NOIRLab, have uncovered the first example of a phenomenally rare type of binar
. Such an arrangement is so vanishingly rare that only about 10 such systems are thought to exist in the entireThis unusual system, known as CPD-29 2176, is located about 11,400 light-years from Earth. It was first identified by’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory. Later observations with the SMARTS 1.
This infographic illustrates the evolution of the star system CPD-29 2176, the first confirmed kilonova progenitor. Stage 1, two massive blue stars form in a binary star system. Stage 2, the larger of the two stars nears the end of its life. Stage 3, the smaller of the two stars siphons off material from its larger, more mature companion, stripping it of much of its outer atmosphere.
As well as representing the discovery of an incredibly rare cosmic oddity, finding and studying kilonova progenitor systems such as this can help astronomers unravel the mystery of how kilonovae form, shedding light on the origin of the heaviest elements in the Universe. Producing such an unusual system, however, is a long and unlikely process. “We know that the Milky Way contains at least 100 billion stars and likely hundreds of billions more. This remarkable binary system is essentially a one-in-ten-billion system,” said Chené. “Prior to our study, the estimate was that only one or two such systems should exist in a spiral galaxy like the Milky Way.”
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