41K views · 1.7K reactions | •• V838 Monocerotis Revisited • Here we see a light echo. A view of an expanding halo of light around a distant star, named V838 Monocerotis (V838 Mon). The illumination of interstellar dust comes from the red supergiant star at the middle of the image, which gave off a flashbulb-like pulse of light. Credit: NASA, the Hubble Heritage Team (AURA/STScI) and ESA | Astronomy Nation | Facebook

• Light Echoes Around RS Puppis Cepheid variable star puts on a spectacular light show 8.3.24 • In 2010 the variable star RS Puppis was observed over a period of five weeks, showing the star growing brighter and dimmer as it pulsates. These pulsations have created a stunning example of a phenomenon known as a light echo, where light appears to reverberate through the murky environment around the star. For most of its life, a star is pretty stable, slowly consuming the fuel at its core to keep it

This isn't an expanding star: this is a light echo! Seen in this time-lapse sonification, a pulse of light from the star V838 Monocerotis gives the illusion that the surrounding dust is expanding into space. In reality, the dust shells aren't expanding at all – the light from the star's flash is just reaching dust that is farther away. Hubble captured the first image #OTD in 2002! This star is located about 20,000 light-years away, at the outer edge of our Milky Way Galaxy. In this sonification,