NASA image explains an unusually green white dwarf
By Staff Writer · Published 10/22/2026, 7:09:16 AM ET
Trace elements in the atmosphere of WD J1330+6435 can shift the faint stellar remnant’s apparent color. NASA’s featured illustration is not a naked-eye view.
NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day on Thursday highlighted WD J1330+6435, a white dwarf whose atmosphere can give the stellar remnant an unusual green appearance.
The October 22 publication uses an illustration of the star surrounded by a disk of orbiting gas and rocky material. NASA identifies the object as a white dwarf, the small and faint remnant left after a star like the sun exhausts its nuclear fuel.
NASA said astronomers recently found that some white dwarfs can appear yellow, green, cyan, pink or purple. Trace elements accumulated by a star can interact with its atmosphere and shift the color that otherwise would look white.
The relationship between color and temperature still applies to the more familiar broad contrast between hotter blue stars and cooler red stars. The additional colors described in the publication arise from atmospheric composition, not a change that would make a nearby bright green star visible in the night sky.
The object is too faint for an unaided observer to see, according to NASA. The publication does not report a new telescope observation, distance measurement or change in the object; it presents an illustration and a concise explanation of the recent color finding.
What it means
NASA’s October 22 image article uses WD J1330+6435 to explain that trace elements in a white dwarf’s atmosphere can shift its apparent color beyond the usual white, red or blue descriptions. The featured view is an illustration credited to Mark A. Garlick and the University of Warwick, and NASA says the faint star cannot be seen without optical assistance; the article announces no new observation or mission.
Source
This State & Nation summary is based on NASA’s original release, dated 2026-10-22. The reporting and statistics above are attributed to that publication.