Closeup image of distant star required four telescopes to take

Scientists have taken what is being described as the most detailed image ever shot of a distant star. The impressive image required the power of four different telescopes to make and the star was first cataloged in 1756 and is called Pi¹ Gruis. The reason for the odd name is that it was originally cataloged using a system dubbed Bayer designation.

That naming convention used a Greek letter followed by the Latin name of the constellation it resides in. The exponent indicates the presence of a binary star system meaning, in this case, there is a Pi² Gruis. Pi¹ Gruis is at the end of its life and is about 350 times the size of our sun.

Scientists say that the star offers a sneak peek of what the sun will look like 5 billion years from now. The image taken of the star meshes well with all the existing theories about gas giant stars. The image of this star is the first where there are visible active granules on the surface.

Its also the first image to confirm theories about the physical characteristics of late-stage, giant stars. The photo also gives a clear look at temperature variations on the star. The white areas are the hottest portions of the star with the red areas being cooler.

The image was possible thanks to the use of four different telescopes that are all in Chile. The scientists working on the image process uses an interferometer to combine all the signals for the telescopes to produce resolution equivalent to much larger telescopes. The image also required reconstruction software and algorithms for surface visualization.

SOURCE: Gizmodo