A star's shocking transformation

What a difference a wavelength makes! The camera on NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, transforms the relatively ho-hum star Zeta Ophiuchi into a stunner, wrapped in a colorful, gauzy shawl of interstellar dust. Astronomers theorize that the blue giant was part of a double-star system that broke up when its partner star went supernova. Now Zeta O. is speeding away through a cloud of dust and gas at a speed of 54,000 mph, and creating the yellowish bow shock you see in this picture. The shock wave is similar to the wave that a boat pushes in front of the bow as it speeds through the water. The feature is completely hidden in visible light, but WISE's infrared camera was able to see it through the obscuring dust. If it weren't for all that dust, Zeta O. would be one of the brightest stars in the sky. Find out more from the WISE website.

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FOR SUBSCRIBERSCBP leaders cut out of Trump ad buy decision

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

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More infrared wonders:

• NASA shares new views of galaxies
• Andromeda's once and future stars
• Infrared portrait traces life of stars
• Slideshow: Wonders from WISE

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