By analyzing X rays generated by the rumblings of a neutron star 40,000 light-years from Earth, astronomers have estimated the thickness of the dense star’s crust.
In December 2004, spacecraft including NASA’s Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer detected the brightest X-ray flash ever seen from beyond the solar system (SN: 2/26/05, p. 132: Available to subscribers at Big Flash: Record-breaking explosion in outer space).
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