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December 22, 2021

Newfound small white dwarf most massive known

This illustration highlights a newfound small white dwarf that is somewhat larger than Earth's moon (shown next to each other for size comparison). The hot young white dwarf is the most massive white dwarf known, weighing 1.35 times as much as our sun.

[Research supported by U.S. National Science Foundation grants OAC 1663688, AST 1440341 and AST 1238877.]

Learn more in the W.M. Keck Observatory news story A white dwarf living on the edge. (Date of image: 2021; date originally posted to NSF Multimedia Gallery: Dec. 22, 2021)

Credit: Giuseppe Parisi


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