Question 1

True or false: WR 104 is one of the brightest stars in the night sky, visible to the naked eye.

Accepted Answer

False. It's far too dim for naked-eye observation; you need a telescope to see it.

Question 2

True or false: If WR 104 exploded today, the resulting gamma-ray burst would reach Earth in minutes.

Accepted Answer

False. Light and gamma rays travel at the same speed, so any burst would take about 2,400 years to reach us.

Question 3

True or false: The spiral pattern around WR 104 is called a 'pinwheel nebula' and was first observed in infrared.

Accepted Answer

True. Yes, its spiral nebula is often called a pinwheel nebula and was discovered using infrared observations.

Question 4

True or false: WR 104 is a Wolf-Rayet star located about 2,400 light-years from Earth in the constellation Sagittarius.

Accepted Answer

True. WR 104 is indeed a Wolf-Rayet star roughly 2,400 light-years away in Sagittarius.

Question 5

True or false: WR 104 is famous because it might produce a gamma-ray burst aimed directly at Earth.

Accepted Answer

True. Its rotation axis is thought to point near Earth, raising the possibility of a dangerous gamma-ray burst if it goes supernova.

Question 6

True or false: WR 104's spiral dust plume is created by its collision with a nearby black hole.

Accepted Answer

False. The spiral plume comes from colliding stellar winds with a hot, massive companion star, not a black hole.

Question 7

True or false: WR 104 is expected to explode as a supernova within the next 100,000 years.

Accepted Answer

True. As a massive Wolf-Rayet star, it's near the end of its life and will likely go supernova within that timeframe.

Question 8

True or false: WR 104's companion star is a red giant that outshines it in visible light.

Accepted Answer

False. Its companion is a hot, massive O-type star, not a red giant; both stars are blue and luminous.

WR 104 Trivia Questions