Editing HE 0437-5439
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== Mechanism of ejection from the Milky Way == |
== Mechanism of ejection from the Milky Way == |
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Studies say that a triple-star system was traveling through the center of the [[Milky Way]] when it came too close to the |
Studies say that a triple-star system was traveling through the center of the [[Milky Way]] when it came too close to the galactic center (which is thought to have a giant [[black hole]]). One of the stars was captured by the black hole causing the other two to be ejected from the [[Milky Way]], where they merged to form a hot blue star. The star is moving at a speed of {{Convert|1600000|mi/h}}, about three times faster than the [[Sun]]'s orbital velocity around the [[galaxy]]'s center, and also faster than the galaxy's [[escape velocity]]. |
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The star is about 200,000 [[light years]] from the galaxy's center. Some doubt has surrounded the previous studies based on the speed and position of HE 0437–5439. The star would have to be at least 100 million years old to have traveled that distance from the galactic core, yet its mass and blue color indicate that it had burned only for 20 million years. These observations led to the explanation that it was part of a triple-star system consisting of two closely bound stars and one outer star. The black hole pulled the outer star away, which granted the star's momentum to the tight binary system and boosted both stars to escape velocity from the galaxy. As the stars traveled away, they went into normal stellar evolution, with one of them becoming a red giant and engulfing the other and forming one giant star — a blue straggler. |
The star is about 200,000 [[light years]] from the galaxy's center. Some doubt has surrounded the previous studies based on the speed and position of HE 0437–5439. The star would have to be at least 100 million years old to have traveled that distance from the galactic core, yet its mass and blue color indicate that it had burned only for 20 million years. These observations led to the explanation that it was part of a triple-star system consisting of two closely bound stars and one outer star. The black hole pulled the outer star away, which granted the star's momentum to the tight binary system and boosted both stars to escape velocity from the galaxy. As the stars traveled away, they went into normal stellar evolution, with one of them becoming a red giant and engulfing the other and forming one giant star — a blue straggler. |