-
White Dwarf Star Spirals
Photograph courtesy NASA/Tod Strohmayer (GSFC)/Dana Berry (Chandra X-Ray Observatory)
About 1,600 light-years away, two dense white dwarfs in the J0806 binary star system orbit each other once every 321 seconds. When they reach the end of their long evolutions, smaller stars typically become white dwarfs.
-
Sirius and Sirius B
Photograph courtesy NASA/ESA/H. Bond (STScl)/M. Barstow (University of Leicester)
The brightest star in the nighttime sky, Sirius, or the Dog Star, greatly outshines its white dwarf companion, Sirius B. At 8.6 light-years away, Sirius B is the nearest known white dwarf star to Earth.
-
White Dwarfs
Photograph courtesy HubbleSite
Ancient white dwarf stars shine in the Milky Way galaxy. Stars like our sun fuse hydrogen in their cores into helium. White dwarfs are stars that have burned up all of the hydrogen they once used as nuclear fuel.
More Photos of the Universe
Health and Human Body
Prehistoric World
Space
Shop National Geographic
2011 Emerging Explorers
ScienceBlogs Picks
-
Steady Hands and Fins
Photographer David Doubilet photographs stingrays, sharks, and more.
-
Survival Guide: Dodging Locusts
Swarm behaviorist Iain Couzin has a toxic reaction to a locust at the same time his team runs out of food.
Advertisement
Explore More From Nat Geo
-
Rocket City Rednecks
Wednesdays at 9P and 9:30P
Meet a group of backwoods Alabama geniuses who tackle problems with hillbilly ingenuity.
-
Mad Scientists
Wednesdays at 10P and 10:30P
Travel across America with host John Bowler as he seeks out the weirdest inventions.
National Geographic Magazine
-
Solar Storms Pictures
The space-weather forecast for the next few years: solar storms, with a chance of catastrophic blackouts on Earth. Are we prepared?
-
Terra-Cotta Army Pictures
Archaeologists and artists, armed with the latest tools and techniques, are bringing the life-size army of painted clay soldiers back to life.
-
Visions Pictures
Each month, National Geographic magazine features breathtaking photographs in Visions of Earth. Browse through visions of the world as seen through a photographer's eye.
Genographic
-
Steady Hands and Fins
Photographer David Doubilet photographs stingrays, sharks, and more.
-
Survival Guide: Dodging Locusts
Swarm behaviorist Iain Couzin has a toxic reaction to a locust at the same time his team runs out of food.
