NASA discovers 'Youngest Black Hole' in Milky Way:
NASA has claimed to have discovered the youngest black hole, named W49B, in Earth’s galaxy or the Milky Way.
The black, located within a supernova remnant, was formed by a rare supernova explosion of a massive star. The agency’sChandra X-ray Observatory captured its images which is located 26,000 light-years away.
The remnant is estimated to be about 1,000 years old. It is very young as compared to the average age of a black hole in the Milky Way which ranges b/w 17,000 and 21,000 years. The agency is still to confirm the event.
The formation of this black is very unusual as most supernova lead to the formation of a neutron star (a small and highly dense body comprised almost entirely of neutrons). These neutron stars are identified by their unique X-ray characteristics which were not found in W49B indicating that it has instead formed a black hole.
Related Posts
Month: Current Affairs - February, 2013
Category: Science & Technology Current Affairs