HUBBLE ATLAS
Panel 3 (Symbiotic star) — image from the Hubble Space Telescope

Illustrations

Panel 3

August 24, 1999 · ESA/Hubble · Symbiotic star

Zoom to full resolution Original on ESA/Hubble ↗

When enough gas accumulates on the white dwarf's surface it explodes as a nova outburst. Most of the hot gas forms a pair of expanding bubbles above and below the equatorial disk.