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Astronomers have detected a rare space object that emits powerful bursts of energy in both radio and X-ray wavelengths every 44 minutes. The object, known as ASKAP J1832-0911lies around 15,000 light-years away in the Milky Way and is the first of its kind to show such behaviour across both ends of the electromagnetic spectrum.Long-period transients (LPTs) a recently identified class of cosmic bodies typically emit brief pulses of radio waves separated by hours or minutes. But until now, none had been observed producing X-ray emissions. ASKAP J1832-0911 has changed that, emitting energy levels far beyond anything previously recorded in this category.“This object is unlike anything we have seen before,” said Dr Ziteng (Andy) Wang, lead author of the study and a researcher at Curtin University, part of the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR). The findings were published this week in *Nature*.
A lucky observation
ASKAP J1832-0911 was initially detected via radio signals by the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP), operated by CSIRO on Wajarri Yamaji Country. By sheer coincidence, NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory happened to be surveying the same region of sky at the same time, enabling astronomers to match the radio pulses with bursts of X-ray radiation.“Discovering that ASKAP J1832-0911 was emitting X-rays felt like finding a needle in a haystack,” said Dr Wang. “The ASKAP telescope has a broad view of the sky, but Chandra focuses on a much smaller region, so the overlap was a matter of great fortune.”Since the first LPT was discovered in 2022, around ten more have been identified. But none has demonstrated behaviour as intense and regular as ASKAP J1832-0911.
New Physics on the horizon?
Astronomers suspect ASKAP J1832-0911 could be either an ageing magnetar a type of dead star with extremely strong magnetic fields or a binary system containing a magnetised white dwarf, the remnant of a low-mass star.“ASKAP J1831-0911 could be a magnetar, or it could be a pair of stars in a binary system where one is a highly magnetised white dwarf,” Wang explained. “However, even those theories do not fully explain what we are observing. This discovery could indicate a new type of physics or new models of stellar evolution.”
A doorway to more discoveries
According to Professor Nanda Rea from the Institute of Space Science (ICE-CSIC) and the Institute of Space Studies of Catalonia (IEEC), the discovery suggests ASKAP J1832-0911 may be the first of many similar objects.“Finding one such object hints at the existence of many more,” Rea said. “The discovery of its transient X-ray emission opens fresh insights into their mysterious nature.”
