This brilliant variable star is taking centre stage in this image that was acquired by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. To the top left of this picture is its more diminutive partner star. The Orion Nebula, a gigantic area of star formation around 1,450 light-years from Earth, is home to both stars.
In the image, a smattering of brilliant four-pointed stars set against a backdrop of amorphous shades of red and blue gaseous matter. A noticeable massive and brilliant star can be seen in the lower right-hand corner of the picture, while a prominent somewhat smaller star can be seen in the upper left-hand corner.
Other, fainter stars may be seen scattered across the picture, and they all have that distinctive four-spiked look since Hubble's secondary mirror has four separate lenses.
.
The largest of the two stars is an Orion Variable, which is a kind of variable star that may change its appearance over time. Astronomers can see the erratic fluctuations in brightness that result from these young stars' tumultuous emotions and developing pains.
Also, READ: ISRO's Aditya-L1 mission explained: India's first dedicated scientific effort to study sun with VELC payload
The nebula is apparent in this view as the patches of gas and dust that are scattered throughout the landscape, and it is often thought to be related to the Orion Variables.
