The formation of blue stragglers
This illustration demonstrates the two ways that blue stragglers in star clusters form.
The illustration on the left shows the collision model where two low-mass stars in an overcrowded environment experience a head-on collision, combining their fuel and mass to form a single hot star.
The illustration on the right depicts the "vampire" model consisting of a pair of stars that undergo a transformation, with the lower-mass star draining its larger-mass companion of the hydrogen that fuels its rebirth.
Credit:ESA/Hubble, M. Kornmesser
About the Image
Id: | heic1915c |
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Type: | Artwork |
Release date: | 9 September 2019, 17:00 |
Related releases: | heic1915 |
Size: | 7310 x 3109 px |
About the Object
Type: | Unspecified : Star : Grouping : Cluster |
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Category: | Star Clusters Stars |