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Thursday, October 28, 2010

Photo: Mysterious Explosion Caused Massive Star to Brighten


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A Hubble Space Telescope image of the massive star Eta Carinae shows two large bubbles of gas expanding in opposite directions from its bright central region.

The star's sudden brightening in 1843 was caused by a mysterious explosion of a type never before identified—not stellar winds as previously thought, experts said in September 2008.

Photograph courtesy NASA