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A Hubble Space Telescope image of stars in the globular cluster M22.
Click on image for full size
NASA, ESA, and K. Sahu (STScI)

Stars

The pinpoints of light that you see in the night sky are stars. Your ability to see the stars depends on how bright they are (their "absolute magnitude"), as well as how close they are to Earth. Stars are giant balls of gas in space that shine through the darkness. The Sun is an average star that Earth orbits.

Check out some Star Statistics or visit the All Star Gallery to learn about specific stars.

You can visit these interesting ExploraTours that explain How to Build a Star and that take A Peek into the Lives of Stars.

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