UEA researcher part of NASA team to discover hot spots merging on a Magnetar

Published by  News archive

On 10th Mar 2022

Getty Images

Multimillion-degree hot spots merging on a Magnetar have been discovered by an international team including a researcher at the University of East Anglia.


A Magnetar is a supermagnetized stellar core no larger than a city. It is a type of isolated neutron star, the crushed core left behind when a massive star explodes.

Compressing more mass than the Sun’s into a ball about 12 miles across, a neutron star is made of matter so dense that a teaspoonful would weigh as much as a mountain on Earth.

What sets magnetars apart is that they sport the strongest magnetic fields known, up to 10 trillion times more intense than a refrigerator magnet’s and a thousand times stronger than a typical neutron star’s.

The magnetic field represents an enormous storehouse of energy that, when disturbed, can power an outburst of enhanced X-ray activity lasting from months to years.

It is hoped that the discovery will help guide scientists to a more complete understanding of the interplay between the crust and magnetic field of these extreme objects.

The discovery was made using NASA’s Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) telescope, and UEA’s Dr Sam Lander has been part of the international team, playing a major role in the theoretical interpretation of the observations.

Dr Lander, an astrophysicist from UEA’s School of Physics, said: “Magnetars are a kind of ultra-dense star powered by a strong magnetic field.  Studying them combines many different aspects of physics - which means that those of us working in this research field are always kept busy, especially since new observations habitually throw up more surprises. 

“Magnetars have a solid crust that sometimes breaks - parts of it are moved out of place, like an earthquake - and one major strand of my own research has been understanding how this process works. 

“Here at UEA I have been particularly focussed in following this crustal motion through computer simulations and comparing my theoretical results with observations.
“This paper reports a completely new phenomenon from a magnetar - the observation of hot spots drifting across its surface. 

“My co-authors and I believe that this hotspot drifting is the most direct evidence to date of crustal failure, and so gives me really valuable information to incorporate into my own models. 

“Together with a wealth of other recent observations, it is a really exciting time to be working on magnetar physics,” he added.

‘Pulse Peak Migration during the Outburst Decay of the Magnetar SGR 1830-0645: Crustal Motion and Magnetospheric Untwisting’ is published in the journal Astrophysical Journal Letters: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2041-8213/ac4700 

Latest News

 
08 Jun 2023

UEA Dance Squad complete 12-hour charity dance-a-thon in support of teammate’s chronic health condition

The University of East Anglia's Dance Squad held a 12-hour dance-a-thon in May, to support the Crohn’s and Colitis UK charity and in solidary with squad member...

Read more >
 
Top 25 graphic in pink, UEA Broad in background
07 Jun 2023

UEA climbs into UK’s top 25 in Complete University Guide 2024

The University of East Anglia (UEA) has risen into the UK’s top 25 universities, up to joint 22nd, in a leading league table released today (Wednesday 7 June).

Read more >
 
A woman looking at two fizzy drink bottles in a supermarket.
05 Jun 2023

Banning multibuy discounts drives sales rather than curbing appetites

With the government under pressure to devise policies that help curb excessive consumption of unhealthy foods and drinks, new research from the University of...

Read more >
 
An older woman drives a car with a passenger.
06 Jun 2023

Researchers and driving assessors join forces to support drivers with dementia

Researchers at the University of East Anglia are part of a new project to improve driving assessments for people with dementia.

Read more >
Are you searching for something?
 
An older woman drives a car with a passenger.
06 Jun 2023

Researchers and driving assessors join forces to support drivers with dementia

Researchers at the University of East Anglia are part of a new project to improve driving assessments for people with dementia.

Read more >
 
L-R: A computer screen with coding; the UEA logo and TenderFlow logo
01 Jun 2023

UEA to introduce new AI programme based on Google’s open-source hardware-accelerated JavaScript library

Students from the University of East Anglia (UEA) will be among the first in the country to be taught skills in artificial intelligence based on TensorFlow.js,...

Read more >
 
UEA campus
01 Jun 2023

UEA rises into world’s top 40 sustainable universities

UEA has climbed into the top 40 universities in the world for sustainability according to the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, the first and only global...

Read more >
 
A woman receiving treatment for diabetes.
31 May 2023

The breakthrough that could lead to new obesity treatments

Researchers at the University of East Anglia and the University of Cambridge have made an important discovery in the race to find treatments for obesity and...

Read more >
 
Charterhouse Warren, taken in 1972-1973.
30 May 2023

4,000-year-old plague DNA found – the oldest cases to date in Britain

A researcher from the University of East Anglia has helped find the oldest case of the plague in Britain.

Read more >
 
Chemistry diagram titled: Facilitating surface functionalisation and biological applicability
01 Jun 2023

UEA researchers develop a synthetic strategy to protect and functionalise inorganic nanoparticles, enhancing their theranostic potential

Researchers at UEA, led by Dr María J. Marín, have worked in collaboration with the group of Dr Thomas Hirsch at the University of Regensburg to develop a...

Read more >