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AdamAutism1998
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I am a little puzzled with how there is a White Dwarf Binary of Five Minutes. How do they get so close?
Interesting. That's very good. Though I didn't think they would naturally get so close from just evolution.rootone said:It's more than likely that the two stars originally were more distant from each other and orbiting more slowly.
Over a very long they have become closer, and so would need to orbit faster so that orbit is maintained.
Remember white dwarfs are very small and dense, so they could get very close together without actually colliding or merging.
Maybe this pair have settled into this small orbit and will stay that way for a long time, then again in the long run it's possible they will end up merging.
The result would probably be a neutron star, or possibly a black hole, and likely there would be a supernova event just before that.
Binary dwarf/neutron stars form when a massive star reaches the end of its life and undergoes a supernova explosion. The core of the star collapses, creating a neutron star, while the outer layers of the star are ejected, forming a white dwarf. The two stars then orbit each other in a binary system.
The close proximity of binary dwarf/neutron stars is due to their mutual gravitational attraction. As the two stars orbit each other, they can gradually come closer together due to the transfer of mass and angular momentum between them.
The distance between binary dwarf/neutron stars varies depending on the specific system, but it can range from a few thousand kilometers to a few million kilometers. This is significantly closer than the distance between planets in our solar system.
Scientists study binary dwarf/neutron stars using a variety of techniques, including observations with telescopes and other instruments that detect electromagnetic radiation such as X-rays and radio waves. They also use computer simulations and theoretical models to better understand the behavior of these systems.
Yes, binary dwarf/neutron stars can merge over time due to the loss of energy and angular momentum through gravitational waves. When this happens, it can result in a massive explosion called a kilonova, which can produce elements heavier than iron and contribute to the expansion of the universe.