Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
Runaway stars are massive stars traveling rapidly through interstellar space.
Located near the centre of this European Southern Observatory photograph , HD 77581 itself is so bright that it saturates the sensitive camera and produces the spiky cross shape. This star is over 6,000 light-years away in the constellation Vela , and appears to move at over 50 miles per second. Specific rights apply .