【Selected Readings】

The universe is vast and vast, with countless various types of celestial bodies, and our more common celestial bodies are stars and planets, which are also the two most common types of celestial bodies in the universe, and they belong to relatively normal celestial bodies. In addition to these relatively normal and regular celestial bodies, there are also some special mysterious and very domineering celestial bodies in the universe, such as the black hole, the overlord of the universe, and the neutron star whose mass is second only to it.

Neutron stars are actually the same as black holes, they are formed by supernova explosions when massive stars die, the difference is that supermassive stars die and evolve into black holes, while massive stars die and evolve into neutron stars. So from the ultra-high density and relatively small volume of the neutron star, we can imagine the singularity at the center of the black hole. The singularity at the center of the black hole can be seen as a smaller version of the neutron star, and scientists don't know how small it is, because we don't have the ability to go into the center of the black hole to observe it. Therefore, it is very important for scientists to study the mystery of observing neutron stars, and it is possible that when we really solve the mystery of neutron stars, we may be able to solve the mystery of black holes, and there may be unexpected major discoveries.

The number of neutron stars in the universe is also relatively large, and what we usually call pulsars is actually a type of neutron star. They all have a very obvious feature that they can rotate at high speed, and they are also able to emit very regular pulse signals outward, which is easy for people to misunderstand that this is a signal sent by an extraterrestrial civilization.

Neutron stars are generally no more than 30 kilometers in diameter, and although they are not large, they can reach densities of between 80 million and 200 million tons per cubic centimeter, which is almost equal to a huge nucleus. This means that a neutron star can be three times as massive as the Sun. There are also different levels of neutron stars, we often use the rotational speed of neutron stars to measure the strength of a neutron star, most neutron stars are like stars, they have their own fixed and stable orbits, and they will not run around except for high-speed rotation. However, when a small number of neutron stars explode due to supernovae, the angle of matter ejection is very different, resulting in a very uneven force, and the ejection of material in a certain direction gives a very strong reverse thrust, so it becomes a wandering neutron star.

The fastest object in the universe is often such neutron stars, and scientists have discovered the fastest celestial body known to mankind through long-term observations, which is the neutron star numbered PSRJ0002+6216. The neutron star is about 30 kilometers in diameter, about three times the mass of the Sun, and is about 6,500 light-years away from Earth.

This neutron star was born about 5,000 years ago, and after its birth, it was pushed away from the birthplace by a huge push, and then began a long interstellar wandering. So how fast does it wander? According to current observations and calculations, its speed is 4.02 million kilometers per hour, which is 1,000 times faster than the speed of the cannon chamber. At this speed, it only takes one second to travel from Beijing to Shanghai, about 6 minutes to the moon, and 40 hours to reach the sun. In addition to its super-fast wandering speed, it also has a super-fast rotation speed, which can rotate 9 times in one second. Scientists were able to observe it in part because of its strong pulse signal during its rapid wandering, and because it also dragged an ultra-long tail that could be up to 13 light-years long.

This extra-long tail is probably the longest known tail of a celestial body, far more spectacular than the tail produced by the rapid advance of a comet, this tail is made of shock waves and accelerating particles created by gamma rays, and through the direction of this tail we can also deduce its birthplace, which is the remains of a supernova called CTB1, which is said because its stellar shell is no longer there, replaced by a large bubble.

Although this neutron star wandering in the universe will be spectacular, any celestial body will be frightened when it sees such a super-fast neutron star. We all know that in the universe, in addition to mass being king, velocity can also be called overlord, and the faster the speed of an object, the greater the kinetic energy it will generate. The reason why an asteroid hits the Earth is so powerful and destructive is that it hits the ground at a very high speed. Therefore, in the universe, once a super-fast celestial body collides, it will definitely be a disaster that destroys the world. Neutron stars, on the other hand, have a density and mass second only to black holes, and their structures are terrifyingly dense.

I believe that no celestial body dares to collide head-on with a neutron star, once it is collided by a neutron star, the neutron star will be fine, and the celestial body touched by it may fall apart, just like an egg hitting a stone, and a neutron star is not an ordinary stone, but an iron stone. Just imagine such an iron stone, no matter how powerful the egg is, it will be ruined.

The density of neutron stars is terrifyingly large, and it will be unlucky for other celestial bodies to meet them standing there, not to mention neutron stars in overdrive. Even if such a neutron star collides with a star, it may be a sight to behold, and even if it cannot penetrate, once the star collides with it, it will be finished. Therefore, a speeding wandering neutron star like PSRJ0002+6216 is sometimes far more terrifying than a black hole, a black hole will be fine as long as other celestial bodies do not approach it, while PSRJ0002+6216 will take the initiative to find the door, and if unlucky, other celestial bodies will not be able to avoid it. Fortunately, the space is very empty, and the distance between celestial bodies is relatively far, so there will be no collision between neutron stars and other celestial bodies.

Of course, scientists are still very much looking forward to PSRJ0002+6216, if it can keep moving in the direction of the solar system, maybe it will be close to the solar system in many years, and at that time, it will be possible to achieve close observation with the help of human technology, which is a very good opportunity to understand neutron stars.

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