The Nearest Star to the Sun

Chandra_236_1024

chandra_236 November 9th, 2004

Credit: NASA/CXC/SAO

X-ray observations of Proxima Centauri, the nearest star to the Sun, have shown that its surface is in a state of turmoil. Flares, or explosive outbursts occur almost continually. This behavior can be traced to Proxima Centauri's low mass, about a tenth that of the Sun. In the cores of low mass stars, nuclear fusion reactions that convert hydrogen to helium proceed very slowly, and create a turbulent, convective motion throughout their interiors. This motion stores up magnetic energy which is often released explosively in the star's upper atmosphere where it produces flares in X-rays and other forms of light. X-rays from Proxima Centauri are consistent with a point-like source. The extended X-ray glow is an instrumental effect. The nature of the two dots above the image is unknown - they could be background sources.

Provider: Chandra X-ray Observatory

Image Source: http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/2004/proxima/

Curator: Chandra X-ray Observatory, Cambridge, MA, USA

Image Use Policy: http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/image_use.html

Image Details

Image Type
Observation
Object Name
Proxima Centauri

Distance

Universescale1
4 ly
Chandra_236_128
 

Position Details

Position (ICRS)
RA = 14h 29m 42.7s
DEC = -62° 40’ 47.4”
Orientation
North is 1.1° CW
Field of View
1.5 x 1.5 arcminutes
Constellation
Centaurus

Color Mapping

  Telescope Spectral Band Wavelength
Orange Chandra (ACIS) X-ray 826.7 pm
Spectrum_xray1
Orange
Chandra_236_1280
×
ID
236
Subject Category
Subject Name
Proxima Centauri
Credits
NASA/CXC/SAO
Release Date
2004-11-09
Lightyears
4
Redshift
4
Reference Url
http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/2004/proxima/
Type
Observation
Image Quality
Good
Distance Notes
Facility
Chandra
Instrument
ACIS
Color Assignment
Orange
Band
X-ray
Bandpass
Central Wavelength
0.8267
Start Time
Integration Time
Dataset ID
49899
Notes
Coordinate Frame
ICRS
Equinox
J2000
Reference Value
217.4279262, -62.6798252
Reference Dimension
2400.0, 2400.0
Reference Pixel
1201.0, 1201.0
Scale
1.04418e-05, 1.0441757e-05
Rotation
-1.10
Coordinate System Projection:
TAN
Quality
Full
FITS Header
Notes
WCS retrieved using CXCs PinpointWCS
Creator (Curator)
Chandra X-ray Observatory
URL
http://chandra.harvard.edu
Name
Chandra X-ray Observatory Center
Email
cxcpub@cfa.harvard.edu
Telephone
617.496.7941
Address
60 Garden St.
City
Cambridge
State/Province
MA
Postal Code
02138
Country
USA
Rights
http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/image_use.html
Publisher
Chandra X-ray Observatory Center
Publisher ID
chandra
Resource ID
proxima_xray.tif
Metadata Date
2012-03-21T14:05:01-04:00
Metadata Version
1.2
×

 

Detailed color mapping information coming soon...

×
Universescalefull
4

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