Eta Carinae

star system · explosion · constellation Carina

Ultra-bright duo. Eta Carinae is actually at least two stars orbiting each other, and together they shine with the power of more than five million suns. That makes it one of the most luminous star systems we know of.

The Great Eruption. In 1837, Eta Carinae suddenly brightened dramatically, and by 1843 it became the second-brightest star in Earth's entire night sky. This spectacular outburst was so powerful that the star became visible in daylight.

Invisible to eye. After its explosive brightness faded, Eta Carinae disappeared from naked-eye visibility for decades. But starting around 1940, it slowly began brightening again and can now be seen without a telescope.

Far, far away. Even though Eta Carinae seemed incredibly bright, it's actually about 7,500 light-years from Earth in the constellation Carina, making it one of the most distant bright objects we can see.