Dead Star's Rainbow Glow Baffles Scientists, Challenges Stellar Theories

• Astronomers discovered a spectacular rainbow-shaped bow shock around the dead star RXJ0528+2838, located 731 light-years away.
• This white dwarf, a remnant of a Sun-like star, emits glowing gas forming a colorful arc, defying existing stellar models.
• The bow shock, typically formed by stellar winds colliding with interstellar gas, is unusually bright and well-defined despite the star lacking a surrounding gas disk.
• Hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen emissions create the vibrant, rainbow-like colors, challenging the understanding of white dwarfs and their outflows.
• Strong magnetic fields are hypothesized to channel material from a companion star, producing the directed outflow and the unexpected colorful display.

Why It Matters: A dead star's rainbow glow challenges stellar theories, highlighting the unexpected role of magnetic fields.