When a star wanders too close to a black hole, the intense gravity will stretch the star out until it becomes a long river of hot gas, as shown in this animation. The gas is then whipped around the black hole and is gradually pulled into orbit, forming a bright disk.

This is the first full view of the quiet Sun with NASA's NuSTAR. This video highlights a variety of bright points and structures even though the Sun is nearing the minimum of its activity cycle, without any active regions or flares present. NuSTAR gives a unique view of the energetic processes that are present on the quiet Sun, helping to understand how the atmosphere of the Sun is heated.

A new study using data from NASA's NuSTAR space telescope suggests that the most luminous and massive stellar system within 10,000 light-years, Eta Carinae, is accelerating particles to high energies -- some of which may reach Earth as cosmic rays.

This animation shows a neutron star -- the core of a star that exploded in a massive supernova. This particular neutron star is known as a pulsar because it sends out rotating beams of X-rays that sweep past Earth like lighthouse beacons.

NuSTAR is showing that exploding stars slosh around before blasting apart. This 3-D computer simulation demonstrates how the supernova explosion might look.

NASA's newest X-ray telescope will have a lengthy structure that unfolds in space, allowing it to see high-energy objects like feeding black holes.

NASA's NuSTAR will use its X-ray eyes to scout for hidden black holes in the universe.

Astrophysicist Ann Hornschemeier explains how NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array, or NuSTAR, uses high-energy X-rays to search for and take pictures of the densest, hottest and most energetic regions in the universe!

A computer simulation of how NuSTAR will launch.

The story of Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) a high energy space telescope.