High-velocity star US 708 was ejected from an ultra compact binary system by a thermonuclear supernova explosion. The star is traveling with a velocity of about 1,200 kilometers per second or 2.7 million miles per hour and will escape the gravity of our galaxy.
Credit:
W. M. Keck Observatory
NASA/ESA/HUBBLE, S. Geier
NASA, ESA, P. Ruiz-Lapuente, S. Geier
The fastest unbound star in our Galaxy ejected by a thermonuclear supernova
S. Geier, F. Fürst, E. Ziegerer, T. Kupfer, U. Heber, A. Irrgang, B. Wang, Z. Liu, Z. Han, B. Sesar, D. Levitan, R. Kotak, E. Magnier, K. Smith, W. S. Burgett, K. Chambers, H. Flewelling, N. Kaiser, R. Wainscoat, C. Waters
Science 6 March 2015 DOI: 10.1126/science.1259063
