Hubble's view on symbiotic binary star R Aquarii
This image captured by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope features R Aquarii, a symbiotic binary star that lies only roughly 1000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Aquarius. This is a type of binary star system consisting of a white dwarf and a red giant that is surrounded by a large, dynamic nebula.
[Image description: A bright binary star surrounded by a nebula. The star, in the centre, is a large white spot surrounded by a circular glow. It has a large, X-shaped set of diffraction spikes around it. The nebula extends far above, below, left and right of the star in long, arcing shapes made of thin, multicoloured filaments – mostly red and greenish colours, but lit in a bright cyan near the star where its light illuminates the gas.]
