Astronomers at the University of Ibaraki in Japan have recorded a rare accretionary explosion event, the source of which was the supermassive protostar G358-MM1. This is reported by Science Alert.
An accretionary explosion usually occurs during star formation, when the latter absorbs too much matter from the interstellar medium. Flares like this have only been observed in the Milky Way three times. It is known that in this case natural masers become active - the radio-wave equivalents of lasers, which are observed at centimeter wavelengths.
In 2019, scientists using the Australian Long Baseline Array recorded increased activity from masers associated with the protostar G358-MM1. Subsequent observations revealed heat waves that traveled from the source through the material surrounding the star. This phenomenon was observed for the first time and was not noticed in the two previously detected accretion explosions.
According to scientists, they recorded a previously unknown type of accretionary burst. It is possible that there are a number of varieties of these phenomena, whose properties depend on the mass and stage of evolution of the young star.
