The Roundest Celestial Object Is a Star

Astronomers have revealed that the roundest celestial object in the universe is a star. Scientists have located the object at approximately five thousand light-years away from our planet. This star is even much bigger than twice the size of our Sun, being also more round. Experts have proved that planets and stars do not represent perfectly round spheres.

• Scientists have revealed the roundest celestial object in the universe.
• The star has a subtle difference between the two radii, measuring only three kilometers.

All celestial objects which rotate around their axis or around other celestial objects flatten in the middle due to centrifugal forces which act upon them. The speed with which celestial object spin it influences the centrifugal force. The greater is the speed, the greater is the centrifugal force, too. The flattening process is more accentuated if the centrifugal force is massive.

Astronomers need to establish the difference between the equatorial and the polar radii of a celestial object to reveal its flatness. Specialists have calculated the relative flatness of the sun. This star finishes a complete rotation in approximately 27 Earth days, registering a difference between equatorial and polar radii of about ten kilometers. Terra is even flatter than that, recording a difference of about 21 kilometers.

Scientists have used an innovative technique called asteroseismology which is bound to determine the oscillation of a star. Due to this method, specialists were able to identify that the roundest celestial object called Kepler 11145123 registered a difference of just three kilometers. The difference between its polar and equatorial radii surprised astronomers, being subtle.

Laurent Gizon, a researcher in the study from the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, has argued that Kepler 11145123 proved to be the roundest celestial object measured, surpassing the Sun. During a time span which measured four years, specialists have analyzed the rhythmic luminosity of the star. The analysis has uncovered two types of oscillations which had distinct latitudes.

The shifts in the frequency of pulsing luminosity during high-latitude and low-latitude fluctuations have revealed the difference between the radii of the star. The team of researchers has considered that the low-latitude magnetic field plays a significant role in preserving the roundness of the star.

The astonishing breakthrough has also demonstrated that the differences between the radii may be a starting point in the study of examining magnetism on remote stars. The research was recently published in Science Advances magazine.

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