Astronomers at the European Southern Observatory (EOS) have discovered a neutron star invisible in visible light with a weak magnetic field and a ring of cold gas. The object is located near the Small Magellanic Cloud, making it the first such astrophysical body found outside the Milky Way. This is reported by Science Alert.
According to scientists, the age of the object SNR 1E 0102.2-7219 (E0102) is two thousand years. It is a supernova remnant that forms a complex bubble-like structure. Data from the Very Large Telescope and the Chandra X-ray Observatory orbiter showed that the bubble contained a toroidal region of cold gas slowly receding from the compact object at the center of E0102.
This compact object turned out to be an X-ray source and was designated p1. Its nature remained unknown, and it was also unclear if it was actually in or behind E0102 itself.
Astronomers have proven that the object was part of a supernova remnant and was a small neutron star, about half the size of ordinary neutron stars, which are usually 20 kilometers in diameter. This type of astrophysical body emits weak X-ray radiation and is not visible in visible light. The mechanism for the formation of the cold gas cloud is still unknown, but scientists believe that it has something to do with the absorption of a companion star by a compact object.