VLT image of a dead star creating a shock wave as it moves through space
eso_eso2601b January 12th, 2026
Credit: ESO/K. Iłkiewicz and S. Scaringi et al.
The central square image, taken with the MUSE instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope, shows shock waves around the dead star RXJ0528+2838. When a star moves through space it can push away nearby material creating a so-called bow shock, which in this image is glowing in red, green and blue. The colours represent hydrogen, nitrogen and oxygen, respectively. These shocks are usually produced by a strong outflow expelled from the star. However, in the case of RXJ0528+2838 –– a white dwarf with a Sun-like companion –– astronomers discovered that the shock wave can’t be explained by any known mechanism. Some hidden energy source, perhaps magnetic fields, could be the answer to this mystery.
Provider: European Southern Observatory
Image Source: https://www.eso.org/public/images/eso2601b/
Curator: European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, None, Germany
Image Use Policy: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
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Image Details
- ID
- eso2601b
- Subject Category
- B.3.7.3
- Subject Name
- 1RXS J052832.5+283824
- Credits
- ESO/K. Iłkiewicz and S. Scaringi et al.
- Release Date
- 2026-01-12T11:00:00
- Lightyears
- Redshift
- Reference Url
- https://www.eso.org/public/images/eso2601b/
- Type
- Observation
- Image Quality
- Distance Notes
- Facility
- Instrument
- Color Assignment
- Band
- Bandpass
- Central Wavelength
- Start Time
- Integration Time
- Dataset ID
- Notes
- Coordinate Frame
- Equinox
- Reference Value
- Reference Dimension
- 945.0, 927.0
- Reference Pixel
- Scale
- Rotation
- Coordinate System Projection:
- Quality
- FITS Header
- Notes
- Creator (Curator)
- European Southern Observatory
- URL
- https://www.eso.org
- Name
- Telephone
- Address
- Karl-Schwarzschild-Strasse 2
- City
- Garching bei München
- State/Province
- None
- Postal Code
- D-85748
- Country
- Germany
- Rights
- Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
- Publisher
- European Southern Observatory
- Publisher ID
- eso
- Resource ID
- eso2601b
- Resource URL
- https://www.eso.org/public/archives/images/original/eso2601b.tif
- Related Resources
- Metadata Date
- 2025-12-05T10:13:06+01:00
- Metadata Version
- 1.1
Detailed color mapping information coming soon...
