Milky Way's Outer Spiral Arms Extend Further Than Thought, Say X-Ray Echoes
TL;DR
Astronomers used X-ray echoes from rare gamma-ray bursts observed by NASA’s Chandra and ESA’s XMM-Newton to geometrically measure dust rings in the Milky Way’s spiral arms, finding the outer arms extend farther than previously known (one distant dust cloud about 3,500 light-years across). This geometry-based method, not dependent on the galaxy’s rotation, could prompt revisions to estimates of the Milky Way’s mass and structure, though its data are limited by the rarity of bright gamma-ray bursts.
Topics:sciencespace#astronomy#chandra#dust#galaxy#gamma-ray-bursts#milky-way#nasa#space#spiral-arms#xmm-newton
- NASA’s most powerful X-ray telescope reveals Milky Way may stretch farther than previously known New York Post
- NASA's Chandra telescope reveals Milky Way's outer reaches may stretch farther than previously known Fox News
- NASA’s Chandra Examines Milky Way at Arms’ Length NASA Science (.gov)
- XMM-Newton helps revise distance to outer spiral arms European Space Agency
- The Milky Way’s arms might not look as we thought EarthSky
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