Giant Carbon Star CW Leonis | Hubble

Giant Carbon Star CW Leonis | Hubble

The NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope provides a striking observation of the carbon star CW Leonis, which resembles a baleful orange eye glaring from behind a shroud of smoke.

CW Leonis glowers from deep within a thick shroud of dust in this image. Lying roughly 400 light-years from Earth in the constellation Leo, CW Leonis is a carbon star—a luminous type of red giant star with a carbon-rich atmosphere. The dense clouds of sooty gas and dust engulfing this dying star were created as the outer layers of CW Leonis itself were thrown out into the void.

Credit: European Space Agency/Hubble & NASA, T. Ueta, H. Kim

Release Date: October 28, 2021

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