Chandra Release - February 28, 2022 Visual Description: GW170817 Illustration Today's release features an illustration of a vertically-oriented, oval debris field with a swirling disk at its core, and blue arcs hovering above and below at either end. This is an artist's conception of the aftermath of a "kilonova", a powerful event that happens when two neutron stars merge. The swirling disk at the core of the illustration has a glowing white light at its center. This represents gas falling onto a black hole that formed after two neutron stars merged. This merger is called GW170817. The disk sits at the core of the oval debris field like a small yoke floating inside an egg. As the neutron stars merge, the debris generates visible and infrared light from the decay of radioactive elements. In the artist's conception, this debris field glows like a mottled, electric, orange and red marble. Hovering above and below the ends of the oval debris field are glowing blue arcs. When the neutron stars merged, a jet of high-energy particles shot from the disk at the kilonova's core. This jet slowed down and widened upon impact with surrounding gas and dust. The blue arcs illustrate where particles from the now-faded jet struck surrounding material.