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South Africa's MeerKAT radio telescope has scored an
impressive observational victory with the publication of
its magnetar study in ˇ§The Astrophysical Journalˇ¨.
The journal gave a description of the study, conducted
by the radio telescope array in the Northern Cape, which
observed a rare burst of activity from the exotic star.
"The first scientific publication based on MeerKAT data
is a wonderful milestone," said Professor Roy Maartens,
SKA SA research chair at the University of the Western
Cape.
"Although MeerKAT isn't complete yet, it's now clearly a
functioning telescope. We've been training a new
generation of researchers, and soon our young scientists
will be using what promises to be a remarkable discovery
machine."
Magnetars are rare stars that form from neutron stars,
which have powerful magnetic fields.
"Neutron stars are the very dense remains left over
after the supernova explosion at the end of a massive
star's life. When the star reaches the end of its
nuclear burning phase, and there is no more fuel
available for burning, the star explodes in an extremely
bright supernova explosion, blasting off its outer
layers and leaving a very dense core behind," Dr
Rosalind Skelton of the South African Astronomical
Observatory told News24.
Skelton's research field focuses on galaxy formation and
how star formation influences the growth of galaxies
ˇV Source:
www.news24.co.za |
