Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars are not only hot, bright, and massive. They are also in an advanced stage of evolution, losing mass at an incredible rate.
Astronomers detected 19 new stars using a Large Monolithic Imager equipped on this telescope.
"Our improved imaging data and spectroscopic follow-up confirmed 19 new WRs across three small fields in M31 [Andromeda galaxy]," mentioned the paper, which has been uploaded to the preprint server. At first, the team identified 30 potential WR candidates in late 2021. The team went on to conduct a detailed spectroscopic analysis in 2022 using the 6.5-m MMT telescope, which is operated by the Multiple Mirror Telescope Observatory .According to the study, the newly discovered WRs in the Andromeda galaxy are significantly dimmer compared to previously identified ones.
The authors believe numerous more Wolf-Rayet stars in the Andromeda galaxy are waiting to be identified. One challenge is that WRs are only concentrated near their birthplaces rather than elsewhere in the galaxy. As a result, astrophysicists must first pinpoint such regions to locate more similar stars in our neighboring galaxy.The evolved massive star populations of the Local Group galaxies are generally thought to be well-understood. However, recent work suggested that the Wolf-Rayet content of M31 may have been underestimated.
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