This picture shows what used to be a faint light to one of the brightest stars in Sagittarius, although now it is fading. This is due to a nova. A nova is caused by the accretion of hydrogen onto the surface of the star, commencing a runaway fusion reaction. This produces a large amount of light, even enough to see it from earth. This specific nova was the brightest that we have been able to see from earth in over a year. This light is so bright that for weeks we will still be able to see it with binoculars.
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