Earth looking down the barrel of a Deathstar

**Pharm Girl** · 03-03-2008, 03:56 PM

Earth may be staring down the barrel of one of the galaxy's most beautiful and potentially deadly objects.

A highly unstable star at the end of its life could unleash a burst of gamma-ray radiation directed straight at Earth, any time between now and the next couple of hundred thousand years.

University of Sydney astronomer Peter Tuthill discovered an elegant rotating pinwheel system known as WR104 in the constellation Sagittarius eight years ago.

It contains a Wolf-Rayet star, the last stop in a star's life before it explodes in a massive supernova.

While studying WR104's striking and colorful shape, Dr Tuthill noticed that the perfect spiral he was observing could only occur when staring right down the centre of it.

"Viewed from Earth, the rotating tail appears to be laid out on the sky in an almost perfect spiral," Dr Tuthill said.

"It could only appear like that if we are looking nearly exactly down on the axis of the binary system."

For most people, the word deathstar conjures images of the planet-destroying space station in Star Wars movies.

While Dr Tuthill's colorful spiral is far more beautiful than that rather ugly and menacing grey sphere, it is no less deadly.

Earth could be right in the firing line when the star eventually explodes.

"Sometimes, supernovae like the one that will one day destroy WR104 focus their energy into a narrow beam of very destructive gamma-ray radiation along the axis of the system," Dr Tuthill said.

"If such a gamma-ray burst happens, we really do not want Earth to be in the way."

WR104 is about 8,000 light years away from Earth, which is right down the street in galactic terms and Dr Tuthill believes there is evidence that Earth may have been hit by one of these bursts before.

"Earlier research has suggested that a gamma-ray burst ... could be harmful to life on Earth out to these distances," he said.

"And scientists have speculated that, eons ago, a gamma-ray burst from a distant star could explain mass extinctions seen in the fossil record."

A group of US scientists calculated that a 10 second burst of gamma-rays could deplete as much as 50 per cent of the Earth's protective ozone layer, allowing through potentially deadly radiation.

But don't go digging a shelter in your backyard and stocking up on sunscreen just yet, as Dr Tuthill says that the fully fledged gamma-ray burst is the worst case scenario.

"The two extremes are a very directed beam along the axis or a spherical explosion but the reality is that WR104 might lie somewhere in the middle of that, it has a preference for beaming things our way but maybe not as deadly as a fully fledged burst," Dr Tuthill said.

If the worst does happen, we can't expect much warning.

The first signs of the star's explosion would be the detection of the gamma-rays and it may have already happened.

"It could have gone off 8,000 years ago and we wouldn't know it, it could go off tomorrow, any time in the next couple of hundred thousand years is all we can say, but in astronomy terms that's imminent and we can't say any more than that," Dr Tuthill said.

"The question really boils down to whether or not WR104 could generate a gamma-ray burst when it goes supernova, and that's a question that I think the jury is still out on.

"But in any event we will have a ringside seat for a pretty impressive fireworks display."

Blue star????

**Mafoo** · 03-03-2008, 04:07 PM

i hope to be dead before getting zapped with gamma rays.. interesting though

Bearsy · 03-03-2008, 06:59 PM

How much you wanna bet it happens December 21, 2012?

lol that'd be crazy.

~1~ · 03-03-2008, 07:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BearsysRevenge

How much you wanna bet it happens December 21, 2012?

lol that'd be crazy.

No, what'd be crazy is if it happened December 12, 5988 BCE.

Scary crazy.

Bearsy · 03-03-2008, 07:28 PM

What if it already has?

~1~ · 03-03-2008, 07:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BearsysRevenge

What if it already has?

Thats what I'm sayin'...

At least we'll have the same warning the dinosaurs did.

bongsmilie

radarrider · 03-03-2008, 08:08 PM

the Hubble Space Telescope took the image of a millenium, an image that shows our place in the universe. anyone who understands what this image represents, is forever changed by it.

<object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/mcBV-cXVWFw"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"> </param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/mcBV-cXVWFw" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>

we live in an amazing place...

-therider

aft3rsh0kk · 03-05-2008, 01:41 PM

radar rider, would you happen to know the name of that painting the beginning of that youtube video there?

it looks like a leonardo da vinci painting, but not sure.

would be a cool hi res background xD

Flamingnun · 03-05-2008, 01:45 PM

I like how you took the time to put the exciting parts in bold.

aft3rsh0kk · 03-05-2008, 01:59 PM

back in HS turning in papers with important stuff bolded were givewaways to getting your paper from sparknotes...

Mr.Tree · 03-06-2008, 08:32 PM

to radar rider////

Google Earth

google sky. instead of seeing just seeing the ultra deep field. you see alot more, and in incredibly good res.

B. · 03-10-2008, 04:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aft3rsh0kk

radar rider, would you happen to know the name of that painting the beginning of that youtube video there?

it looks like a leonardo da vinci painting, but not sure.

would be a cool hi res background xD

Its called the Flammarion Woodcut and the artist is anonymous.

It was originally a wood engraving rather than a painting, the colour version in that vid was done by Heikenwaelder Hugo in 1998.

radarrider · 03-10-2008, 08:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by B.

Its called the Flammarion Woodcut and the artist is anonymous.

It was originally a wood engraving rather than a painting, the colour version in that vid was done by Heikenwaelder Hugo in 1998.

dammit, I was just about to post this.
haha, very knowledgable though, B.

love always,
therider

B. · 03-10-2008, 08:20 PM

lol, I hate it when your about to post something and someone beats you to it!

Coincidentally, I was only reading about it the other day and then it randomly pops up in a youtube vid, hence my seemingly boundless knowledge!

radarrider · 04-13-2008, 09:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by B.

lol, I hate it when your about to post something and someone beats you to it!

Coincidentally, I was only reading about it the other day and then it randomly pops up in a youtube vid, hence my seemingly boundless knowledge!

ahh B., such an intellectual, a true renaissance man! haha, interestsing stuff though.

therider

03-03-2008, 03:56 PM	#1 (permalink)
Pharm Girl Weeding the Garden.~ Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 4,539 Blog Entries: 13 Thanks: 3,002 Thanked 1,176 Times in 894 Posts	Earth looking down the barrel of a Deathstar Earth may be staring down the barrel of one of the galaxy's most beautiful and potentially deadly objects. A highly unstable star at the end of its life could unleash a burst of gamma-ray radiation directed straight at Earth, any time between now and the next couple of hundred thousand years. University of Sydney astronomer Peter Tuthill discovered an elegant rotating pinwheel system known as WR104 in the constellation Sagittarius eight years ago. It contains a Wolf-Rayet star, the last stop in a star's life before it explodes in a massive supernova. While studying WR104's striking and colorful shape, Dr Tuthill noticed that the perfect spiral he was observing could only occur when staring right down the centre of it. "Viewed from Earth, the rotating tail appears to be laid out on the sky in an almost perfect spiral," Dr Tuthill said. "It could only appear like that if we are looking nearly exactly down on the axis of the binary system." For most people, the word deathstar conjures images of the planet-destroying space station in Star Wars movies. While Dr Tuthill's colorful spiral is far more beautiful than that rather ugly and menacing grey sphere, it is no less deadly. Earth could be right in the firing line when the star eventually explodes. "Sometimes, supernovae like the one that will one day destroy WR104 focus their energy into a narrow beam of very destructive gamma-ray radiation along the axis of the system," Dr Tuthill said. "If such a gamma-ray burst happens, we really do not want Earth to be in the way." WR104 is about 8,000 light years away from Earth, which is right down the street in galactic terms and Dr Tuthill believes there is evidence that Earth may have been hit by one of these bursts before. "Earlier research has suggested that a gamma-ray burst ... could be harmful to life on Earth out to these distances," he said. "And scientists have speculated that, eons ago, a gamma-ray burst from a distant star could explain mass extinctions seen in the fossil record." A group of US scientists calculated that a 10 second burst of gamma-rays could deplete as much as 50 per cent of the Earth's protective ozone layer, allowing through potentially deadly radiation. But don't go digging a shelter in your backyard and stocking up on sunscreen just yet, as Dr Tuthill says that the fully fledged gamma-ray burst is the worst case scenario. "The two extremes are a very directed beam along the axis or a spherical explosion but the reality is that WR104 might lie somewhere in the middle of that, it has a preference for beaming things our way but maybe not as deadly as a fully fledged burst," Dr Tuthill said. If the worst does happen, we can't expect much warning. The first signs of the star's explosion would be the detection of the gamma-rays and it may have already happened. "It could have gone off 8,000 years ago and we wouldn't know it, it could go off tomorrow, any time in the next couple of hundred thousand years is all we can say, but in astronomy terms that's imminent and we can't say any more than that," Dr Tuthill said. "The question really boils down to whether or not WR104 could generate a gamma-ray burst when it goes supernova, and that's a question that I think the jury is still out on. "But in any event we will have a ringside seat for a pretty impressive fireworks display." Blue star???? __________________ .....The Time has Come to 'Walk the Talk'.....~ ......A message for ALL from the Deer Tribe...~ It is a great journey — but you must do the walking and have the willingness to change and make the leap into the next level of human evolution. Become an inquisitive free thinking individual that takes responsibility for your life and the spiritual accountability to live life to the fullest. *Fuck the Monkeys* Last edited by Pharm Girl; 07-13-2008 at 08:29 AM.

03-03-2008, 04:07 PM	#2 (permalink)
Mafoo nice daze Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: the anguish of anticipated transformation Posts: 5,973 Thanks: 3,775 Thanked 2,651 Times in 1,697 Posts	i hope to be dead before getting zapped with gamma rays.. interesting though __________________ PLUR For once you have tasted flight you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skywards, for there you have been and there you will long to return

03-03-2008, 08:08 PM	#7 (permalink)
radarrider Zen Mystic Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Sacramento, CA Posts: 205 Thanks: 23 Thanked 15 Times in 14 Posts	the Hubble Space Telescope took the image of a millenium, an image that shows our place in the universe. anyone who understands what this image represents, is forever changed by it. <object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/mcBV-cXVWFw"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"> </param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/mcBV-cXVWFw" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object> we live in an amazing place... -therider __________________ "Let your mind wander in simplicity, blend your spirit with the vastness, follow along with things the way they are, and make no room for personal views." - Chuang-tzu Last edited by radarrider; 03-03-2008 at 08:09 PM. Reason: j

03-05-2008, 01:45 PM	#9 (permalink)
Flamingnun Shpadoinkle Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: roflmao Posts: 17,491 Thanks: 1,046 Thanked 2,633 Times in 1,185 Posts	I like how you took the time to put the exciting parts in bold. __________________

03-10-2008, 08:20 PM	#14 (permalink)
B. Drexciyan Join Date: Jun 2003 Posts: 779 Thanks: 22 Thanked 96 Times in 72 Posts	lol, I hate it when your about to post something and someone beats you to it! Coincidentally, I was only reading about it the other day and then it randomly pops up in a youtube vid, hence my seemingly boundless knowledge! __________________ The Lizard-Man makes his living as a freak... Sound Cloud photos

03-06-2008, 08:32 PM	#11 (permalink)
Mr.Tree jujubee lord Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Detroit, Mich Posts: 519 Thanks: 108 Thanked 50 Times in 41 Posts	to radar rider//// Google Earth google sky. instead of seeing just seeing the ultra deep field. you see alot more, and in incredibly good res.

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