Cosmic dust discs withstand hellfire
Tuesday, March 10, 2015 - 08:30
in Astronomy & Space
A team of scientists led by astronomers at the University of Bonn discovered an unusual phenomenon in the centre of the Milky Way: They detected about 20 rotating dust and gas discs in each cluster hosting exceptionally large and hot stars. The existence of these discs in the presence of the destructive UV radiation field of their massive neighbours came as a surprise. The science team is pondering how these rotating discs are able to withstand evaporation under these extreme conditions. The results are published in the most recent edition of the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics.