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NASA Marks New Year 2024 With Stunning Image Of Celestial Fireworks. See Post
NDTV
The image depicts GK Persei, a sort of mini-supernova that first lit up Earth's skies more than a century ago.
Many countries across the globe bid goodbye to 2023 and ushered in 2024, signalling the start of 12 new months of hope and positivity. US space agency NASA also marked the occasion with a stunning image of celestial fireworks created by a stellar explosion. Taking to Instagram, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) shared the picture taken by Chandra X-ray Observatory. It depicts GK Persei, a sort of mini-supernova that first lit up Earth's skies more than a century ago.
"This stellar show captured by @NASAChandraXRay is a nova called GK Persei. It's an example of a "classical nova," or an outburst of mass caused by a thermonuclear explosion on the dense surface of a white dwarf star," the space agency captioned the post.
"This often happens when a white dwarf and a larger star - often a red giant - orbit each other. Together, they become a binary star system. The white dwarf rips material from its companion star, and if enough borrowed mass accumulates on the surface of the white dwarf, a cosmic blast occurs, resulting in a stellar fireworks display," it added.