ESO@esoastronomy@mastodon.social
A team of astronomers have used ALMA to observe the supergiant star DFK 52, and found a cloud of ejected material 1.4 light-years across!
DFK 52 is around 10-15 times more massive than the Sun. About 4000 years ago it went through an episode of extreme mass shedding, and then slowed down to its current rate. It has already lost 5-10% of its mass, for reasons still unkown 🤔
https://www.eso.org/public/images/potw2531a/
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ALMA(ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)/M. Siebert et al.
#astrodon #astronomy #astrophysics #space #science