Hubble Sees a Neutron Star Alone in Space

Esahubble_opo9732b_1024

esahubble_opo9732b September 24th, 1997

Credit: Fred Walter (State University of New York at Stony Brook), and NASA/ESA

This is the first direct look, in visible light, at a lone neutron star, as seen by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. The Hubble results show the star is very hot (1.2 million degrees Fahrenheit at the surface), and can be no larger than 16.8 miles (28 kilometers) across. These results prove that the object must be a neutron star, because no other known type of object can be this hot, small, and dim (below 25th magnitude).

Provider: Hubble Space Telescope | ESA

Image Source: https://www.spacetelescope.org/images/opo9732b/

Curator: ESA/Hubble, Garching bei München, Germany

Image Use Policy: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License

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Image Details

Image Type
Observation
Object Name
RX J185635-3754
Subject - Milky Way
Star > Evolutionary Stage > Neutron Star

Color Mapping

  Telescope Spectral Band Wavelength
Red Hubble (WFPC2) Optical (V) 606.0 nm
Cyan Hubble (WFPC2) Ultraviolet (U) 300.0 nm
Spectrum_base
Red
Cyan
Esahubble_opo9732b_1280
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ID
opo9732b
Subject Category
B.3.1.9  
Subject Name
RX J185635-3754
Credits
Fred Walter (State University of New York at Stony Brook), and NASA/ESA
Release Date
1997-09-24T20:00:00
Lightyears
Redshift
Reference Url
https://www.spacetelescope.org/images/opo9732b/
Type
Observation
Image Quality
Distance Notes
Facility
Hubble Space Telescope, Hubble Space Telescope
Instrument
WFPC2, WFPC2
Color Assignment
Red, Cyan
Band
Optical, Ultraviolet
Bandpass
V, U
Central Wavelength
606, 300
Start Time
Integration Time
Dataset ID
Notes
Coordinate Frame
Equinox
Reference Value
Reference Dimension
398.0, 399.0
Reference Pixel
Scale
Rotation
Coordinate System Projection:
Quality
FITS Header
Notes
Creator (Curator)
ESA/Hubble
URL
http://www.spacetelescope.org/
Name
Email
Telephone
Address
Karl-Schwarzschild-Strasse 2
City
Garching bei München
State/Province
Postal Code
D-85748
Country
Germany
Rights
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
Publisher
ESA/Hubble
Publisher ID
esahubble
Resource ID
opo9732b
Metadata Date
2003-12-09T17:48:53+01:00
Metadata Version
1.1
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Detailed color mapping information coming soon...

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