The Star VFTS 243 Missed The Supernova Stage And Collapsed Directly Into A Black Hole
Most of us are familiar with the term “supernova” – a process in which a star collapses under its own gravity and produces a powerful explosion. This stellar event is so bright that it can illuminate the surrounding area of its galaxy for days on end, providing astronomers with a unique opportunity to study the life cycle of stars and the expansion of the Universe. But what happens when a star disappears without a trace? European scientists have hypothesized that massive stars may skip the supernova stage and directly collapse into a black hole, according to a new study.
Astrophysicists from the University of Copenhagen conducted a detailed observation of the VFTS 243 system in the Large Magellanic Cloud, 160 thousand light years from Earth. The system contains one black hole with a mass of about 10 solar masses and a blue giant with a mass of 25 solar masses. The black hole, as observations and calculations show, was formed as a result of the collapse of another massive star at the end of its life. But there are no traces of a supernova explosion in the system, which is believed to put an end to the life of a star.
“Usually, supernovae in stellar systems can be detected in a variety of ways after they have occurred,” the study authors explain. “But despite the fact that VFTS 243 contains a star that collapsed into a black hole, no traces of an explosion were found anywhere. The VFTS 243 is an unusual system. The system’s orbit has remained virtually unchanged since the star collapsed into a black hole.”
Further research will be needed to determine whether the pattern observed in VFTS 243 is common among other missing stars.
