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Space & Physics

JWST unveils a neutron star in supernova remnant

The neutron star detection was made possible with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) infrared detectors.

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An image of the SN 1987A by JWST. The irradiated argon gas emission can be seen in the center of the frames (right). Credit: STScI

A team of astrophysicists used the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to confirm presence of a neutron star within the explosive remnants of the SN 1987A supernova.

The eponymous SN 1987A remains the only supernova in the past few centuries to have been visible in the sky – even in daytime.

Previous research into the supernova remnant didn’t yield conclusive evidence in favor of a neutron star. They ruled out black holes too. The new research makes it as conclusive as it can get.

Also, it’s the first time that tell-tale signs of a neutron star signature were detected from any supernova event. “We have not observed any compelling signature of such a newborn object from any supernova explosion,” said first author Claes Fransson, an astrophysicist at Stockholm University to NASA. “With this observatory, we have now found direct evidence for emission triggered by the newborn compact object, most likely a neutron star.”

The JWST’s MIRI (or Mid-Infrared Instrument) and NIRcam (or Near Infrared Camera) detected the radiation in infrared.

A supernova event marks the end of the first phase of a massive star’s life, when a star runs out of fuel required to maintain nuclear fusion. In this case, the star’s core collapsed inward, producing a neutron star while the outer layers of the host star were shed away in a cataclysmic explosion.

In SN1987a’s case, the host star was a blue supergiant. Our sun in comparison is a low mass star, and evolves differently when it ages.

The paper suggests the neutron star born from SN 1987A may have reached as much as at least 100 billion degrees Celsius in the immediate aftermath of the 1987 supernova event.

Now 37 years later, the star cooled to at most 3 million degrees Celsius. Our sun is pale in comparison, at 5,600 degree Celsius.

Argon gas not so ‘noble’ anymore

The neutron star’s intense radiation managed to heat even argon gas from the remnant, which forced the gas in turn to emit its own radiation. It’s this radiation in the infrared wavelength that was detected by JWST. Other wavelengths detected include sulfur gas, silicates and graphite that form dust.

This is surprising since argon exists on earth as a chemically un-reactive gas, in standard temperature and pressure conditions. Although astrophysicists have known for over a decade that supernova events can ‘ionize’ argon gas, it’s just not so often that these type of events occur.

The researchers believe the argon was formed by the nuclear fusion of oxygen and silicon from the parent blue supergiant.


“To create these ions that we observed in the ejecta, it was clear that there had to be a source of high-energy radiation in the center of the SN 1987A remnant,” said Fransson. “In the paper we discuss different possibilities, finding that only a few scenarios are likely, and all of these involve a newly born neutron star.”

However, the researchers aren’t sure what sub-type of neutron star they could have detected. It’s either a ‘cooling neutron star’ or a ‘pulsar wind nebulae’ that’s the source of the radiation.

The researchers claimed to have done their analysis systematically, ruling out any alternatives in place of the supposed neutron star.

The research, published in Science, was funded by the space agencies of Sweden, Europe, the UK and the US. Others included the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation, European Research Council,  Science Foundation Ireland/Irish Research Council Pathway program, UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), STFC Webb fellowship, California Institute of Technology, Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation/State Agency of Research, Belgian Science Policy Office (BELSPO) for the provision of financial support in the framework of the PRODEX program of the European Space Agency (ESA).

Space & Physics

MIT unveils an ultra-efficient 5G receiver that may supercharge future smart devices

A key innovation lies in the chip’s clever use of a phenomenon called the Miller effect, which allows small capacitors to perform like larger ones

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Image credit: Mohamed Hassan from Pixabay

A team of MIT researchers has developed a groundbreaking wireless receiver that could transform the future of Internet of Things (IoT) devices by dramatically improving energy efficiency and resilience to signal interference.

Designed for use in compact, battery-powered smart gadgets—like health monitors, environmental sensors, and industrial trackers—the new chip consumes less than a milliwatt of power and is roughly 30 times more resistant to certain types of interference than conventional receivers.

“This receiver could help expand the capabilities of IoT gadgets,” said Soroush Araei, an electrical engineering graduate student at MIT and lead author of the study, in a media statement. “Devices could become smaller, last longer on a battery, and work more reliably in crowded wireless environments like factory floors or smart cities.”

The chip, recently unveiled at the IEEE Radio Frequency Integrated Circuits Symposium, stands out for its novel use of passive filtering and ultra-small capacitors controlled by tiny switches. These switches require far less power than those typically found in existing IoT receivers.

A key innovation lies in the chip’s clever use of a phenomenon called the Miller effect, which allows small capacitors to perform like larger ones. This means the receiver achieves necessary filtering without relying on bulky components, keeping the circuit size under 0.05 square millimeters.

Credit: Courtesy of the researchers/MIT News

Traditional IoT receivers rely on fixed-frequency filters to block interference, but next-generation 5G-compatible devices need to operate across wider frequency ranges. The MIT design meets this demand using an innovative on-chip switch-capacitor network that blocks unwanted harmonic interference early in the signal chain—before it gets amplified and digitized.

Another critical breakthrough is a technique called bootstrap clocking, which ensures the miniature switches operate correctly even at a low power supply of just 0.6 volts. This helps maintain reliability without adding complex circuitry or draining battery life.

The chip’s minimalist design—using fewer and smaller components—also reduces signal leakage and manufacturing costs, making it well-suited for mass production.

Looking ahead, the MIT team is exploring ways to run the receiver without any dedicated power source—possibly by harvesting ambient energy from nearby Wi-Fi or Bluetooth signals.

The research was conducted by Araei alongside Mohammad Barzgari, Haibo Yang, and senior author Professor Negar Reiskarimian of MIT’s Microsystems Technology Laboratories.

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Society

Ahmedabad Plane Crash: The Science Behind Aircraft Take-Off -Understanding the Physics of Flight

Take-off is one of the most critical phases of flight, relying on the precise orchestration of aerodynamics, propulsion, and control systems. Here’s how it works:

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On June 12, 2025, a tragic aviation accident struck Ahmedabad, India when a regional passenger aircraft, Air India flight A1-171, crashed during take-off at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. According to preliminary reports, the incident resulted in over 200 confirmed casualties, including both passengers and crew members, and several others are critically injured. The aviation community and scientific world now turn their eyes not just toward the cause but also toward understanding the complex science behind what should have been a routine take-off.

How Do Aircraft Take Off?

Take-off is one of the most critical phases of flight, relying on the precise orchestration of aerodynamics, propulsion, and control systems. Here’s how it works:

1. Lift and Thrust

To leave the ground, an aircraft must generate lift, a force that counters gravity. This is achieved through the unique shape of the wing, called an airfoil, which creates a pressure difference — higher pressure under the wing and lower pressure above — according to Bernoulli’s Principle and Newton’s Third Law.

Simultaneously, engines provide thrust, propelling the aircraft forward. Most commercial jets use turbofan engines, which accelerate air through turbines to generate power.

2. Critical Speeds

Before takeoff, pilots calculate critical speeds:

  • V1 (Decision Speed): The last moment a takeoff can be safely aborted.
  • Vr (Rotation Speed): The speed at which the pilot begins to lift the nose.
  • V2 (Takeoff Safety Speed): The speed needed to climb safely even if one engine fails.

If anything disrupts this process — like bird strikes, engine failure, or runway obstructions — the results can be catastrophic.

Environmental and Mechanical Challenges

Factors like wind shear, runway surface condition, mechanical integrity, or pilot error can interfere with safe take-off. Investigators will be analyzing these very aspects in the Ahmedabad case.

The Bigger Picture

Take-off accounts for a small fraction of total flight time but is disproportionately associated with accidents — approximately 14% of all aviation accidents occur during take-off or initial climb.

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Space & Physics

MIT claims breakthrough in simulating physics of squishy, elastic materials

In a series of experiments, the new solver demonstrated its ability to simulate a diverse array of elastic behaviors, ranging from bouncing geometric shapes to soft, squishy characters

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Image credit: Courtesy of researchers

Researchers at MIT claim to have unveiled a novel physics-based simulation method that significantly improves stability and accuracy when modeling elastic materials — a key development for industries spanning animation, engineering, and digital fabrication.

In a series of experiments, the new solver demonstrated its ability to simulate a diverse array of elastic behaviors, ranging from bouncing geometric shapes to soft, squishy characters. Crucially, it maintained important physical properties and remained stable over long periods of time — an area where many existing methods falter.

Other simulation techniques frequently struggled in tests: some became unstable and caused erratic behavior, while others introduced excessive damping that distorted the motion. In contrast, the new method preserved elasticity without compromising reliability.

“Because our method demonstrates more stability, it can give animators more reliability and confidence when simulating anything elastic, whether it’s something from the real world or even something completely imaginary,” Leticia Mattos Da Silva, a graduate student at MIT’s Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, said in a media statement.

Their study, though not yet peer-reviewed or published, will be presented at the August proceedings of the SIGGRAPH conference in Vancouver, Canada.

While the solver does not prioritize speed as aggressively as some tools, it avoids the accuracy and robustness trade-offs often associated with faster methods. It also sidesteps the complexity of nonlinear solvers, which are commonly used in physics-based approaches but are often sensitive and prone to failure.

Looking ahead, the research team aims to reduce computational costs and broaden the solver’s applications. One promising direction is in engineering and fabrication, where accurate elastic simulations could enhance the design of real-world products such as garments, medical devices, and toys.

“We were able to revive an old class of integrators in our work. My guess is there are other examples where researchers can revisit a problem to find a hidden convexity structure that could offer a lot of advantages,” Mattos Da Silva added.

The study opens new possibilities not only for digital content creation but also for practical design fields that rely on predictive simulations of flexible materials.

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