APOD: 2022 February 5 - Symbiotic R Aquarii

Good morning, Rallypoint, and welcome to the February 5th Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD): "Symbiotic R Aquarii." At a high level, there are four categories to the electromagnetic spectrum: ionizing radiation (e.g. x-rays), visible light, microwaves, and radio waves. Today's APOD takes a look at a member of the constellation Aquarius, R Aquarii, using x-ray data. R Aquarii is a binary star system made up of a red giant and white dwarf. It brings to mind this quote from Henry David Thoreau: "It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see." Cheers.