Evening star., 1950-03-03
Hottest Spot in Creation
Is Patch in Southern Sky
Findings on Crob Nebulo
Reported by Scientists
Bv Thomas X. Henry

By Thomas r. Henry
The hottest spot in creation probably
is a strange, luminous patch in the
southern heavens whose light requires
AZ years to reach the earth.
There are indications that it's tempera-
ture is close to 2 million degrees cent?
grade. 1t is the so-called Crab nebula,
due to the crab-like shape OF its great
envelope of expanding gas around
hot central star. For some years now
astronomers have identified it with con-
siderable probability as the remains OF
a star which exploded more than 1000
years ago-a Supernova observed by
Chinese astronomers in that part Of
the heavens in 1854.
During the past few years especially
attuned radio receivers have picked up
a lot of noise which seems to be COM
ing from the Milky Way as whole.
Recently this cosmic noise has been
found much more intense from certain
spots in the heavens. Since it comes
through night and day there have been
suggestions that these spots be con-
sidered as fixed stars for navigation in
daylight major need has been to
locate them with approximate precision.
Such project now is being sponsored
by the Office of Naval Research.
Scientists Report Wark.
Reports have been received here OF
the work of two Australian scientists.
Drs. J. c. Bolton and G. j. Stanley,
which fixes one of them precisely within
the Crab nebula. so that its central star
can be considered as the exact point OF
origin for navigational purposes.
The noise coming from this spot Is
hundredsfold greater than that from the
general area of the Milky Way. Thb
noise was traced to its source by
radio triangulation method. Two re-
ceiving stations were set up. one on
the North coast and the other on the
East coast of the Auckland Peninsula OF
New Zealand.
The explosion that created the Crab
nebula is one of the three, and probably
the most spectacular, supernora blasts
known to have occurred in the Milky
Way system during the time OF man. In
an ordinary nova explosion. one OF which
is recorded by astronomers about every
ten years. star suddenly flares up TO
about 100 times its previous brightness
and then gradually recedes to the point
from which it started. In supernova
the brightness suddenly becomes thou
sands of times what it was before. The
cause is completely unknown. Among
the hundred billion or more stars con-
stituting the Milky Way galaxy it is
unlikely that such blast will occur
oftener than once century. About all
that is known of the phenomenon comes
from observing it in other galaxies of
comparable size a million or more light
bo fhpCA
now within reach of telescopes it is pos
sible to observe few every year.
Two Others Recorded.
Since the Chinese astronomers re-
ported the great stellar explosion which
ended in the Crab nebula two others
have been reported in Europe-the
Brahe and the Kepler supernovae. The
positions of both of these was recorded
with considerable accuracy. Drs. Bolton
and Stanley trained their receivers on
these spots but found no increase over
the general background OF cosmlc noise.
This was not surprising because nothing
which can be discerned through any tele-
scope is left of the stars which exploded.
! whereas the Crab nebula still remains.
This object long has been an enigma
to astronomers. Almost in the center
Oh tl1C pawn VI 0oS AZ ~
red star which, from it's type and magn1-
tude, should have surface temperature
from 1000 to 5000 degrees. Yet, from
other indications, it must be hotter. The
greater part of it's radiation Is invisible
ultraviolet light Drs. Bolton and Stanley
believe. The enormous amount OF TINS
radiation through the gas envelope ma!
have something to do with the noise
It has been concluded that the tota
. radiation from the nebula is about 1O'
times greater than that OF the centra
. star alone. The gas envelope appears u
, be expanding at rate of about LOO
miles a second.
From other considerations the temper
. ature of the nebula as a whole has beel
estimated at about 100000 degrees cent?
.. grade. This is altogether too cool 10
,, the energy necessary to produce TN
:. noise. Drs. Bolton and Stanley say. Yer
!, close to a temperature OF million oe
grees permeating the whole neoul
. theoretically would be necessary. The
= believe, however, that other factors ma
be involved which would reduce the re
ouired temperature considerably
Three or four other "hot spots nav
been found in the Milky Way, but non
approaching the intensity OF the Cra
nebula.
1.4:>n- 1nd AneweYs