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Fomalhaut cs2

Image labeled Fomalhaut system, Hubble Space Telescope. A grainy orange oval ring tilts slightly from upper right to lower left. At two o'clock, a white box outlines the ring's edge and white lines extend to a larger pullout box at lower right. Two spots inside the larger box are marked with dashed white circles and labeled cs1 2012 and cs2 2023. Inside the ring is a black circle with a white star symbol in the middle.

This composite Hubble Space Telescope image shows the debris ring and dust clouds cs1 and cs2 around the star Fomalhaut. For comparison, dust cloud cs1, imaged in 2012, is pictured with dust cloud cs2, imaged in 2023. The dashed circles mark the location of these clouds. When dust cloud cs2 suddenly appeared, astronomers quickly realized they had witnessed the violent collision of two massive objects. Previously thought to be a planet, cs1 is now classified as a similar debris cloud. In this image, Fomalhaut itself is masked out to allow the fainter features to be seen. Its location is marked by the white star.

About the Object

  • R.A. Position
    R.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.
    22:57:39.04
  • Dec. Position
    Dec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.
    -29:37:20.04
  • Constellation
    ConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.
    Piscis Austrinus
  • Distance
    DistanceThe physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs.
    25 light-years

About the Data

  • Data Description
    Data DescriptionProposal: A description of the observations, their scientific justification, and the links to the data available in the science archive.
    Science Team: The astronomers who planned the observations and analyzed the data. "PI" refers to the Principal Investigator.

    This image was created from HST data from proposal 17139 (P. Kalas)

  • Instrument
    InstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.
    STIS/CCD
  • Object Name
    Object NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.
    Fomalhaut System
  • Object Description
    Object DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.
    Stellar debris disk
  • Release Date
    December 18, 2025
  • Science Release
    NASA’s Hubble Sees Asteroids Colliding at Nearby Star for First Time
    Read the release
  • Credit
    Image: NASA, ESA, Paul Kalas (UC Berkeley); Image Processing: Joseph DePasquale (STScI)

Downloads

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    tif (4.07 MB)
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    jpg (1.42 MB)
Image labeled Fomalhaut system, Hubble Space Telescope. A grainy orange oval ring tilts slightly from upper right to lower left. At two o'clock, a white box outlines the ring's edge and white lines extend to a larger pullout box at lower right. Two spots inside the larger box are marked with dashed white circles and labeled cs1 2012 and cs2 2023. Inside the ring is a black circle with a white star symbol in the middle.
Color Info
Color InfoA brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented.

This image is a composite of many separate exposures made by the STIS instrument on the Hubble Space Telescope. This image was originally black and white and recorded only overall brightness. These brightness values were translated into a range of reddish hues. Such color "maps" can be useful in helping to distinguish subtly varying brightness in an image. Red: STIS/CCD

Related Images & Videos

Illustration is labeled Artistu2019s Concept in the bottom, left corner. Slightly off-center against a black background, an explosive and fiery-looking orange object appears. Orange streamers, filaments, and particles radiate from the objectu2019s center. Within it, but slightly off-center to the right, is a mottled, yellow, amorphous blob. This blob is outlined on three sides in white, and on the fourth, right side in dark orange and red. White particles emanate from this blob, particularly on the right side.

Fomalhaut cs2 Illustration

This artist’s concept shows the sequence of events leading up to the creation of dust cloud cs2 around the star Fomalhaut.

At the top left corner, a fuzzy white star appears. Traversing the top of the image and cutting across the top of the star is a ghostly white streak. At the bottom right corner is an explosive and fiery-looking orange object. Orange streamers, filaments, and particles radiate from the objectu2019s center. Within it, but slightly off-center to the right, is a mottled, yellow, amorphous blob. This blob is outlined on three sides in white, and on the fourth, right side in dark orange and red. White particles emanate from this blob, particularly on the right side.

Fomalhaut cs2 Video

Hubble captured the violent collision of two massive objects around the star Fomalhaut. This extraordinary event is unlike anything in our own present-day solar system. The video shows the sequence of events leading up to the creation of dust cloud cs2 around the star Fomalhaut. ...

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Details

Last Updated
Dec 18, 2025
Location
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Contact
Media

Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov

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