Astronomers discovered that the binary star system WR 104, located 7,500-8,000 light-years away in the constellation Sagittarius, has its rotation axis pointed almost directly at Earth. The system contains a Wolf-Rayet star that will eventually undergo core-collapse supernova and potentially emit gamma-ray bursts from its poles. If such a burst occurs, it could destroy Earth's ozone layer, demonstrating how cosmic events can pose existential risks to our planet when celestial alignments are favorable.
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A Real Star Has Its Death Beam Aimed at Earth #space #astronomy #shorts #spacefacts #wr104Added:
8,000 light years away, two stars are spiraling around each other.
One of them is a Wolf-Rayet, the kind that ends in a violent collapse.
When it dies, it might fire [music] two gamma-ray beams from its poles.
In 2008, astronomers measured the system's rotation axis.
It's pointed almost directly at Earth.
If the beam fires, our ozone layer doesn't survive.
So, is it loaded?
We won't know until it goes off.
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