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Neutron Star Collision Creates Kilonova

Neutron Star Collision Creates Kilonova

Panel 1: A pair of neutron stars in a binary system spiral together. Orbital momentum is dissipated through the release of gravitational waves, which are tiny ripples in the fabric of space-time.

Panel 2: In the final milliseconds, the two objects merge and produce a gamma-ray burst lasting just a fraction of a second.

Panel 3: A small fraction of the mass of the merging neutron stars is flung out during the merger. This hot, highly radioactive material expands and its outer layer thins enough for infrared light to escape. At its peak brightness (within a week of the merger) the explosion is about a thousand times brighter than a classical nova and so is called a “kilonova.”

Panel 4: A massive neutron star or black hole remains after the event with an expanding cloud of debris around it. In addition, a powerful “wind” of material flows outward.

  • Release Date
    October 16, 2017
  • Science Release
    NASA Missions Catch First Light from a Gravitational-Wave Event
    Read the release
  • Credit
    NASA, ESA, and A. Feild (STScI)

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Last Updated
Mar 28, 2025
Contact
Media

Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov

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