Solar Energy News  
STELLAR CHEMISTRY
Astronomers discover dizzying spin of the Milky Way Halo
by Rachel Reed for MU news
Ann Arbor MI (SPX) Sep 28, 2016


Our Milky Way galaxy and its small companion galaxies are surrounded by a giant halo of million-degree gas (seen in blue in this artist's rendition) that is only visible to X-ray telescopes in space. U-M astronomers discovered that this massive hot halo spins in the same direction as the Milky Way disk and at a comparable speed. Image courtesy NASA/CXC/M. Weiss/Ohio State/A. Gupta et al.

Astronomers at the University of Michigan's College of Literature, Science, and the Arts (LSA) discovered for the first time that the hot gas in the halo of the Milky Way galaxy is spinning in the same direction and at comparable speed as the galaxy's disk, which contains our stars, planets, gas, and dust. This new knowledge sheds light on how individual atoms have assembled into stars, planets, and galaxies like our own, and what the future holds for these galaxies.

"This flies in the face of expectations," says Edmund Hodges-Kluck, assistant research scientist. "People just assumed that the disk of the Milky Way spins while this enormous reservoir of hot gas is stationary-but that is wrong. This hot gas reservoir is rotating as well, just not quite as fast as the disk."

The new NASA-funded research using the archival data obtained by XMM-Newton, a European Space Agency telescope, was recently published in the Astrophysical Journal. The study focuses on our galaxy's hot gaseous halo, which is several times larger than the Milky Way disk and composed of ionized plasma.

Because motion produces a shift in the wavelength of light, the U-M researchers measured such shifts around the sky using lines of very hot oxygen. What they found was groundbreaking: The line shifts measured by the researchers show that the galaxy's halo spins in the same direction as the disk of the Milky Way and at a similar speed-about 400,000 mph for the halo versus 540,000 mph for the disk.

"The rotation of the hot halo is an incredible clue to how the Milky Way formed," said Hodges Kluck. "It tells us that this hot atmosphere is the original source of a lot of the matter in the disk."

Scientists have long puzzled over why almost all galaxies, including the Milky Way, seem to lack most of the matter that they otherwise would expect to find. Astronomers believe that about 80% of the matter in the universe is the mysterious "dark matter" that, so far, can only be detected by its gravitational pull. But even most of the remaining 20% of "normal" matter is missing from galaxy disks. More recently, some of the "missing" matter has been discovered in the halo.

The U-M researchers say that learning about the direction and speed of the spinning halo can help us learn both how the material got there in the first place, and the rate at which we expect the matter to settle into the galaxy.

"Now that we know about the rotation, theorists will begin to use this to learn how our Milky Way galaxy formed - and its eventual destiny," says Joel Bregman, a U-M LSA professor of astronomy.

"We can use this discovery to learn so much more-the rotation of this hot halo will be a big topic of future X-ray spectrographs," Bregman says.

Our Milky Way galaxy and its small companion galaxies are surrounded by a giant halo of million-degree gas (seen in blue in this artist's rendition) that is only visible to X-ray telescopes in space. U-M astronomers discovered that this massive hot halo spins in the same direction as the Milky Way disk and at a comparable speed.


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


.


Related Links
University of Michigan
Stellar Chemistry, The Universe And All Within It






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

Previous Report
STELLAR CHEMISTRY
RAVE complements Gaia with Fifth Data Release
Potsdam, Germany (SPX) Sep 21, 2016
The new data release of the RAdial Velocity Experiment (RAVE) is the fifth spectroscopic release of a survey of stars in the southern celestial hemisphere. It contains radial velocities for 520,781 spectra of 457,588 unique stars that were observed over ten years. With these measurements RAVE complements the first data release of the Gaia survey published by the European Space Agency ESA l ... read more


STELLAR CHEMISTRY
Liquid Manure Volume Reduced by Half

Can jet fuel be grown on trees?

Boskalis tests sustainable wood-based biofuel for marine fleet

Valmet to supply biomass-fired power systems to HOFOR Denmark

STELLAR CHEMISTRY
Servosila Robotic Arms product line is launched by Servosila

Team of robots learns to work together, without colliding

Stanford-hosted study examines how AI might affect urban life in 2030

Third European Rover Challenge Kicks Off in Poland

STELLAR CHEMISTRY
SeaRoc launches SeaHub for communication and logistic data

U.S. governors want more offshore wind support

GM commits to 100 percent renewables

Experts anticipate significant continued reductions in wind energy costs

STELLAR CHEMISTRY
First test of driverless minibus in Paris Saturday

Nearly 30 mn diesel cars on EU roads over emissions limit: study

Audi tech chief leaves after reports link him to 'dieselgate'

Investors ask German court for 8.2 bn euros over VW's 'dieselgate'

STELLAR CHEMISTRY
Carbon-coated iron catalyst structure could lead to more-active fuel cells

Proton diffusion discovery a boost for fuel cell technologies

Scientists move step closer to solving fusion plasma dilemma

Fuel cell membrane patented by Sandia outperforms market

STELLAR CHEMISTRY
UN trims nuclear power growth forecasts

Britain approves Hinkley Point nuclear deal

Hinkley Point: a huge nuclear gamble for France

Is nuclear crucial to climate change targets?

STELLAR CHEMISTRY
Europe ups energy security ante

NREL releases updated baseline of cost and performance data for electricity generation technologies

Chinese giant to buy Pakistani power company for $1.6 bn

Economy of energy-hungry India may face headwinds

STELLAR CHEMISTRY
Amazon forest fire threatens natives, wildlife in Peru

Borneo loggers swap chainsaws for cheap healthcare

Indonesia, EU, announce historic deal on timber trade

Eastern forests use up nitrogen in soil during earlier, greener springs









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.