# @europeanspaceagency on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DB4umE4tt2v
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/35584993-europeanspaceagency-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/3e3096e6cc.jpg
- **Posted:** 2024-11-02T22:50:00.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** J.L.Lopez (@xandler80) — https://gondola.cc/xandler80

## Caption

A colourful dance among the stars! 💃

@hubbleesa has captured a mesmerising close-up of one of the most turbulent stars in our galaxy, weaving an enormous spiral pattern through space. R Aquarii, a unique symbiotic binary star system, is located roughly 700 light-years away in the constellation Aquarius. Hubble’s timelapse video, spanning from 2014 to 2023, reveals its incredible evolution over time.

At the heart of this system lies a dramatic duo: a red giant star over 400 times larger than our Sun and a white dwarf. The red giant, a pulsating Mira variable, shines with nearly 5 000 times the brightness of the Sun at its peak, while the white dwarf, on its 44-year orbit, siphons off hydrogen from its companion. This triggers powerful outbursts and plasma jets that shoot out from the system, creating glowing filaments and loops twisted by magnetic fields.

But that’s not all! These violent eruptions release heavier elements like carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen into the cosmos — essential building blocks of planets and life. This process, along with supernovae, is one of the ways the Universe spreads these elements across space.

The nebula surrounding R Aquarii, known as Cederblad 211, may even be the remnant of a past nova. The sheer scale of this system is awe-inspiring — the material extends to at least 400 billion kilometres from the core, or 2 500 times the distance between the Earth and the Sun.

Swipe through to see the stunning timelapse and watch the cosmic drama unfold as the binary star dims, brightens, and lights up the surrounding nebula with its lighthouse-like beam of light.

📸 @NASA, @europeanspaceagency, M. Stute, M. Karovska,  D. de Martin & M. Zamani (@hubbleesa); @creativecommons CC BY 4.0
📹 NASA, ESA, M. Stute, M. Karovska,  D. de Martin & M. Zamani (ESA/Hubble), N. Bartmann (ESA/Hubble)
📹 NASA, ESA, M. Stute, M. Karovska,  D. de Martin & M. Zamani (ESA/Hubble), N. Bartmann (ESA/Hubble)

## Stats

- **Views:** 32,962
- **Likes:** 29,849
- **Shares:** 0
- **Comments:** 74

## Credits

These are the roles credited on Gondola. Credits may be incomplete.
A brand, account owner, or featured person is not necessarily the creator.

| Name | Username | Profile | Role |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| ESA - European Space Agency | @europeanspaceagency | https://gondola.cc/europeanspaceagency | Government Organization |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Producer |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Editor |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Social Media Manager |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Publisher |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Copywriter |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Community Manager |

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