Mapping Wind Patterns in Distant Neutron Star Systems with Accretion Disks

MIT astronomers have mapped the "disk winds" associated with the accretion disk around Hercules X-1, a system in which a neutron star is drawing material away from a sun-like star. By taking advantage of the disk's unique wobble, the astronomers have created a two-dimensional map of its winds, revealing the wind's vertical shape and structure, as well as its velocity. This mapping technique could help determine how disk winds influence the formation and evolution of stellar systems, and even entire galaxies.