Using AstroSat, Astronomers From India Reveal Features of X-Ray Binary System in Space

X-ray binary systems comprise a normal star transferring mass onto a compact neutron star or a black hole.

Using AstroSat, Astronomers From India Reveal Features of X-Ray Binary System in Space

Photo Credit: Athulya M. P. and team

Indian Astronomers performed in-depth analysis of 31 AstroSat observations of GRS 1915+105

Highlights
  • The X-ray binary system in space is known as GRS 1915+105
  • It is some 28,000 light-years away from the Earth
  • It was first detected in August 1992
Advertisement

Astronomers from India have observed an X-ray binary system in space, known as GRS 1915+105, using the AstroSat, the first dedicated Indian astronomy mission. At a distance of some 28,000 light-years away from the Earth, this system is a superluminal low-mass X-ray binary (LMXB). It was first detected in August 1992. But AstroSat observations confirmed it exhibits various types of variability classes. It can transition from one class to another within just a few hours. The system has an orbital period, the time it takes to complete one revolution, of 33.5 days.

Its black hole is estimated to be around 13 times more massive than the Sun. X-ray binary (XRB) systems comprise a normal star or a white dwarf transferring mass onto a small neutron star or a black hole. Based on the mass of the companion star, XRBs are classified as low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) and high-mass X-ray binaries (HMXBs).

Astronomers found the X-ray intensity variations of GRS 1915+105 resembled the light curve of a "canonical" outbursting black hole. However, they also found that this system does not follow the exemplary 'q'-diagram in the hardness-intensity diagram (HID), unlike canonical sources, according to a report on Phys.org, an online science, research, and technology news aggregator.

Previous observations have shown that GRS 1915+105 displays diverse variability in its light curve — 15 classes so far. To learn more about the system, a team of astronomers led by Athulya Menon of Dayananda Sagar University, Bengaluru, decided to investigate the source with AstroSat.

“In this paper, we perform an in-depth analysis of 31 AstroSat observations of GRS 1915+105 during the period of November 2016 to June 2019 by studying the broadband 'spectro-temporal' features of the source,” the researchers stated.

According to them, the behaviour of GRS 1915+105 indicates it will evolve towards an obscured low-luminosity phase, with a decrease in the intrinsic bolometric luminosity of the source due to obscuration.


Is JioPhone Next the 4G phone for everyone that Reliance promises? We discuss this on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.
Affiliate links may be automatically generated - see our ethics statement for details.
Comments

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.

Amazon Enables Alexa to Move Music Between Multiple Echo Devices
Google Cloud Invests $1 Billion in CME Group to Tune Finance-Backing Tech
Share on Facebook Gadgets360 Twitter Share Tweet Snapchat Share Reddit Comment google-newsGoogle News
 
 

Advertisement

Follow Us

Advertisement

© Copyright Red Pixels Ventures Limited 2024. All rights reserved.
Trending Products »
Latest Tech News »