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Carbon Star CW Leonis Dissolve Sequence

This is a time-lapse set of images of the aging red giant star CW Leonis, taken on three dates: 2001, 2011, and 2016. The star is embedded inside gossamer cobwebs of dust encircling the star. These are really shells of carbon dust blown off the star. As they expand into space they change shape, as seen between the Hubble Space Telescope exposures. Brilliant searchlight beams from the star's surface poke through the dust. These beams change orientation through the different dates the Hubble photographs were taken.

  • Release Date
    October 28, 2021
  • Science Release
    Hubble Celebrates Halloween With A Glowering, Dying Star
    Read the release
  • Credit
    ESA/Hubble, NASA, STScI; Acknowledgment: Toshiya Ueta (University of Denver), Hyosun Kim (KASI), Mahdi Zamani

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Related Images & Videos

Red-orange arcs surround the carbon star CW Leonis. Brilliant searchlight beams from the star’s surface poke through.

CW Leonis

A hypnotizing vortex? A peek into a witch's cauldron? A giant space-spider web? In reality, it's a look at the red giant star CW Leonis as photographed by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope — just in time for celebrating Halloween with creepy celestial sights. The orange-red...

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Compass Image for CW Leonis

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Last Updated
Mar 28, 2025
Contact
Media

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

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