Stellar Collision (IMAGE)

University of Minnesota

Stellar Collision

Caption

This object is possibly the oldest of its kind ever catalogued: the hourglass-shaped remnant named CK Vulpeculae. Originally thought to be a nova, classifying this unusually shaped object correctly has proven challenging over the years. A number of possible explanations for its origins have been considered and discarded. It is now thought to be the result of two stars colliding. These new observations are the first to bring this system into focus, suggesting a solution to a 348-year-old mystery.

Credit

ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)/S. P. S. Eyres

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