stars and planets

The Real-life Death Star

Not to freak you out, but there's a gamma ray-blasting stellar mass pointed in your direction

Friends of the Dark Side, your time may soon be at hand. It seems we have a literal death star aiming in our general direction. The culprit is part of a binary star system—two stars which orbit each other—by the name of WR 104. Both are massive and very, very hot. One will eventually explode into a harmless supernova, providing us with a lovely astronomical light show. The other, however, might be deadly.

[ Read Full Story ]

Flickr Block Header

Share your photos in the Pop Sci pool at www.flickr.com!
Current theme: Seasonal Science
Our latest winner

Subscribe for 2 free issues!

may2008_cover.jpg