Cosmic object is so bright that it defies the laws of physics
NASA has recently confirmed that a cosmic object known as an ultra-luminous x-ray source, or ULX, is so bright that it defies the laws of physics. The object in question, M82 X-2, is ten million times brighter than the Sun, and its brightness exceeds what is known as the Eddington limit, which restricts how bright an object can be based on its mass, by up to 500 times.
While previous hypotheses suggested that ULXs only appeared exceptionally bright due to accreted gas and dust that amplified their underlying light source, scientists have now uncovered the mechanism behind their stupefying brightness: magnetic fields so strong that they are impossible to emulate in a lab.
The Eddington limit describes a delicate balance between the outward push of an object’s light-producing radiation and the inward pull of its gravity, like in a star. If bright enough, the outgoing photons of light can actually overwhelm the object’s gravity, preventing wayward matter from getting pulled into its orbit and suspending them in equilibrium.
Astronomers used to think that ULXs were black holes that surrounded themselves with enough gas and dust that gradually heated up over time, eventually radiating light. But in 2014, M82 X-2 was discovered to actually be a neutron star, the incredibly dense core of a once massive star that collapsed in on itself without forming a black hole.
Neutron stars are some of the densest objects in the universe and wield a gravitational pull about 100 trillion times stronger than Earth’s. The astronomers now believe that the ludicrously strong magnetic field of M82 X-2’s neutron star could be distorting the shape of nearby atoms, allowing them to slip through the otherwise overwhelming push by the star’s radiating photons and come crashing into its surface.
While the researchers are armed with ample proof that the Eddington limit is being broken, only further observations will be able to vindicate their findings for ULXs at large. “This is the beauty of astronomy,” said Matteo Bachetti, an astrophysicist at the Cagliari Astronomical Observatory in Italy. “We cannot really set up experiments to get quick answers. We have to wait for the universe to show us its secrets.”
In conclusion, this discovery of a ULX that exceeds the Eddington limit challenges our current understanding of physics and highlights the importance of further observation and study of the cosmos. The findings may pave the way for future breakthroughs in astrophysics and our understanding of the universe.
