Paper in Nature Astronomy: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41550-025-02748-8

Is there a dilatant fluid / superfluid quantum gravity explanation for this?

The viscosity in a superfluid is zero.

I just sent an email to the authors. From https://gemini.google.com/share/0b906914bcfb :

> If we apply Fedi's "Modified Stokes' Law" to the RX J0528+2838 observation, the interpretation shifts from a magnetic propeller effect to a vacuum friction effect. [...]

> Hypothesis: The "persistent bow shock" is not just the star pushing gas, but the star’s high-velocity (or high-rotation) magnetic field creating shear stress on the quantum vacuum itself

How to test whether MHD or SQR best explain the given phenomena?

> Measure: Precise timing of the binary's orbital period (currently ~80 minutes) over the next 5–10 years.

> Orbit decays exactly as General Relativity predicts -> MHD favored.

> Orbit decays significantly faster (anomalous braking) -> Fedi [SQR, dilatant fluid] and/or Alternative Physics favored.

..

> How to Measure: Map the density of the Interstellar Medium (ISM) around the star.

> Result A: The shock brightness correlates perfectly with patches of dense gas -> MHD favored (Gas hitting Gas).

> Result B: The shock remains bright even in "empty" voids where there is no gas to shock, implying the "medium" is space itself -> Fedi favored.

Are these good tests of MHD vs SQR?

> How to Measure: Observe a background transient event (like a distant quasar or burst) passing through the bow shock. Check for time-of-arrival delays between X-rays and Radio waves.