A powerful white-light superflare, dubbed as ASAS-SN-18di, was observed at 7,200 light-years away from Earth and led to the detection of a mid-type M-dwarf.
Astronomers have observed numerous large flares that originate in cold dwarfs, by the moment
These observations are possible due to the fact that M-dwarf and ultra-cold stars can produce high levels of magnetic activity. In general, studying flare events could offer important clues about the magnetic dynamics properties and the interior of stars.
Recently, a group of astronomers led by Romy Rodriguez Martinez, a researcher at the Ohio State University (OSU), has observed a superflare which led to the detection of an M-dwarf star, situated at 7,200 light-years away from us.
The finding is the result of observations made in February 2018 as part of All-Sky Automated Survey for Supernovae (ASAS-SN).
As noted in the document, ASAS-SN is suitable for the detection of white-light superflares. The study monitors the entire sky, on a daily basis, and allows astronomers to detect energy flares in cold dwarfs.
The white-light superflare detected in the recently discovered M-dwarf star is the strongest observed, yet
According to astronomers, the flare observed by Martinez’s team produced a change in the magnitude of the start-source of approximately 9.8. Researchers assume they detected the flare when it was at its peak, otherwise, such a change in brightness couldn’t be possible.
Also, the total energy of this superflare was estimated at approximately 4.1 million Ergs. This value makes ASAS-SN-18di the strongest flare ever observed in both M-dwarf and cold dwarf stars.
The astronomers concluded that a thorough observation of the newly detected star is needed to obtain detailed information about the source of this white-light superflare. They also added that energy flares which cause such changes in the stars’ brightness are very rare, therefore, it is unlikely that an outbreak similar to ASAS-SN-18di will occur in the newly discovered M-dwarf star.
