Stars are massive – even the smallest are far larger than Earth. That doesn’t stop them from trying to get bigger, though, and astronomers have just discovered one that’s managed exactly that.
A binary system is when two stars orbit around each other. Generally, they don’t directly interact, but occasionally one will steal material from the other. This is called a vampire star. The ‘vampire’ is often a type of star called a ‘white dwarf’. This is a star that has run out of fuel and exploded, leaving only its core remaining.
In 2016, a white dwarf stole material from its partner, a ‘brown dwarf’. This is an object that began to form like a star, but never got large enough to begin reacting. Researchers noticed “a 30-day period during which the dwarf nova rapidly became 1,600 times brighter” as gas from the brown dwarf was stolen, says the leader, Ryan Ridden-Harper. They’re now searching through data to find more examples of this rare event.
Lachlan Writes Science 