A recent discovery has revealed the existence of an interstellar tunnel heading towards the constellation Centaurus, probably connecting to another superbubble of gas. This phenomenon, generated by the explosion of young stars, is part of a larger network of hot gas tubes that interact with the cold gas of the interstellar medium.
The Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics' eROSITA X-ray space telescope has created a 3D map of our cosmic neighborhood. Published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics, this map provides crucial data for understanding the local bubble in which the Solar System is located. The data were collected 1.5 million kilometers from Earth, providing a particularly “clean” view of the X-ray sky, free from interference caused by the interaction between the solar wind and atmospheric particles. The research team led by Michael Yeung analyzed 2,000 sections of the sky, finding that the bubble is expanding perpendicular to the galactic plane. In addition, a significant temperature gap was noted: the Galactic North is cooler than the Galactic South. The researchers hypothesize that these temperature differences may have been influenced by the explosions of massive stars, whose supernovae would have contributed to the heating and expansion of the bubble.
The discovery of the interstellar tunnel was a surprise to researchers. Michael Freyberg noted that this tunnel “plows a hole in the cooler interstellar medium.” It is thought to be part of a larger system of hot gas tunnels, shaped by stellar winds and supernova explosions, as well as jets from protostars. These results not only expand our understanding of the structure of the interstellar medium, but also raise new questions about the role of stellar explosions in the formation and evolution of cosmic regions near our Solar System. Looking ahead, further studies may reveal surprising details about how these interstellar tunnels influence galactic dynamics and the evolution of stellar environments. The accumulated knowledge may lead to new discoveries in astrophysics and in our understanding of the universe itself.
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