Dangerous Space
This is the text version of the interactive 3D documentary. 한국어
Danger ranking › Extreme objects
Eta Carinae
Extreme objects #3 · A supernova (maybe hypernova) candidate — but far enough away
View in 3D- Name
- Eta Carinae
- Type
- Hypergiant binary
- Size
- The bigger star is about 100 times the Sun’s mass
- Distance
- about 7,500 light-years from Earth · light takes 7,500 years
The story in 1 scene
The Great Eruption
Eta Carinae, in the constellation Carina, suddenly brightened in the 1840s. By 1843 it was the second-brightest star in the night sky after Sirius. The gas it blew off then still shows up in Hubble photos as two huge balloon-shaped clouds.
Why?A star about 100 times heavier than the Sun barely holds itself together against the push of its own light. It sometimes blasts away its outer layers all at once.
What nextIt is expected to explode as a supernova one day, but at about 7,500 light-years away it is generally considered no danger to Earth.
See this scene in 3D →Sources
Impact-threat rankings and probabilities follow NASA/JPL’s Sentry risk table (as of 2026-11-04). The other categories are editorial rankings using the published criteria. Distances to stars can carry large uncertainties.