The dusty ring around the aging double star IRAS 08544-4431

The Very Large Telescope Interferometer at ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile has obtained the sharpest view ever of the dusty disc around the close pair of aging stars IRAS 08544-4431. For the first time such discs can be compared to the discs around young stars — and they look surprisingly similar. It is even possible that a disc appearing at the end of a star’s life might also create a second generation of planets.

The inset shows the VLTI reconstructed image, with the brighter central star removed. The background view shows the surroundings of this star in the constellation of Vela (The Sails).

Credit:

ESO/Digitized Sky Survey 2
Acknowledgement: Davide De Martin

About the Image

Id:eso1608a
Type:Collage
Release date:9 March 2016, 12:00
Related releases:eso1608
Size:10218 x 7058 px

About the Object

Name:IRAS 08544-4431
Type:Milky Way : Star : Circumstellar Material : Disk
Distance:4000 light years
Category:Stars

Image Formats

Large JPEG
93.4 MB
Screensize JPEG
524.0 KB