This image from the European Southern Observatory's ALMA array in Chile shows the complex and stunning gas environment surrounding the outcome of a battle between two stars deep in outer space.

(ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO), Olofsson et al. Acknowledgement: Robert Cumming)

At a Glance

The explosion created a complex gas environment.The image illustrates the aftermath of the explosion.It could hold clues to the future demise of sun in our own solar system.

It was a stellar battle: Two stars deep in outer space, one of them already dying and the other refusing to be swept up in its companion's last gasps.

The outcome of the epic struggle was captured in a recently released image taken by the European Southern Observatory's ALMA array of telescopes in Chile.

The image, shown above, illustrates surrounding the star system called HD101584 as a smaller star moves closer to the larger, dying star and, instead of being swallowed up, explodes, according to a news release from the ESO. The colors in the image represent how fast gas is moving, with blue moving the fastest in one direction and red the fastest in the opposite direction. The stars are the single bright dot at the center of the green ring-like structure.

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Astronomers think the ring was created from material ejected as the smaller star sped toward its giant red partner, and the larger star tried to swallow the smaller one. Instead, the smaller star spiraled toward the larger star and triggered the explosion.

"HD101584 is special in the sense that this 'death process' was terminated prematurely and dramatically," Hans Olofsson, of the Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden and a lead author on a study of the system released last year, said in ESO's news release.

Such observations can help astronomers find clues to the eventual demise of other stars, including the sun in our own solar system.

"Currently, we can describe the death processes common to many sun-like stars, but we cannot explain why or exactly how they happen," said study co-author Sofia Ramstedt from Uppsala University in Sweden. "HD101584 gives us important clues to solve this puzzle since it is currently in a short transitional phase between better studied evolutionary stages. With detailed images of the environment of HD101584, we can make the connection between the giant star it was before, and the stellar remnant it will soon become."

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