Suggested Searches

 

1 min read

Nova in Binary Star System HM Sagittae (Artist’s Concept)

An artist's concept of the symbiotic binary star system HM Sge on the black background of space sprinkled with varying sizes of red and white points of light. A white dwarf star (at top left) is pulling a stream of gas from its dust-producing red giant companion (at bottom right). That gas forms a blazing hot disk around the white dwarf, which can unpredictably undergo a thermonuclear explosion as the infall of hydrogen from the giant grows denser on the surface until it reaches a tipping point.

This artist’s concept shows the nova system HM Sagittae (HM Sge), where a white dwarf star is pulling material from its red giant companion. This forms a blazing hot disk around the dwarf, which can unpredictably undergo a spontaneous thermonuclear explosion as the infall of hydrogen from the red giant grows denser and reaches a tipping point. These fireworks between companion stars are fascinating to astronomers by yielding insights into the physics and dynamics of stellar evolution in binary systems. 

  • Release Date
    June 10, 2024
  • Science Release
    NASA’s Hubble Finds Surprises Around a Star That Erupted 40 Years Ago
    Read the release
  • Credits
    NASA, ESA, Leah Hustak (STScI)

Downloads

  • Full res "Artist's Concept" watermarked (for display), 3840 × 2160
    (9.07 MB)
  • Full res "Artist's Concept" watermarked (for print), 3840 × 2160
    tif (11.02 MB)
  • Full res (for display), 3840 × 2160
    png (9.09 MB)
  • Half res (for display), 1920 × 1080
    png (2.37 MB)
  • Full res (for print), 3840 × 2160
    tif (11.01 MB)

Related Images & Videos

At the center of the image is a bright white star with four prominent diffraction spikes. The star is surrounded by red clumps. A more translucent, red finger-shaped cloud of vertical material begins at the star's upper right, and goes a bit above it. The black background of space is sprinkled with tiny red and white stars.

Symbiotic Star Mira HM Sge

A Hubble Space Telescope image of the symbiotic star Mira HM Sge. Located 3,400 light-years away in the constellation Sagitta, it consists of a red giant and a white dwarf companion. The stars are too close together to be resolved by Hubble. Material bleeds off the red giant and...

A Hubble Space Telescope image labeled “HM Sge HST WFC3/UVIS” at the top left corner. At the center of the image is a bright white star with four prominent diffraction spikes. The star is surrounded by clumpy red nebulosity. A more translucent, red finger-shaped cloud of material points upward to the star's upper right. The black background of space is sprinkled with tiny red and white stars. Near the top left corner of the image is a three-line color key: F502N (blue), F656N (green), F658N (red). At lower left, a scale bar is labeled 0.1 light-years over 6 arcsec. At bottom right, a white arrow pointing in the 9 o’clock direction is labeled E for east, while an arrow pointing in the 12 o’clock direction is labeled N for north.

Mira HM Sge Compass Image

A Hubble Space Telescope image of the symbiotic star Mira HM Sge with compass and scale bar. Located 3,400 light-years away in the constellation Sagitta, it consists of a red giant and a white dwarf companion. The stars are too close together to be resolved by Hubble. Material...

Share

Details

Last Updated
Mar 06, 2025
Contact
Media

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

Artwork Credit

NASA, ESA, Leah Hustak (STScI)

Related Terms

Keep Exploring

Discover More Topics From NASA

Hubble Space Telescope

Since its 1990 launch, the Hubble Space Telescope has changed our fundamental understanding of the universe.

Hubble Science Highlights

Hubble Images

Hubble News