A compact object and its companion star

This artist’s impression is based on the aftermath of a supernova explosion, SN 2022jli, as seen by two teams of astronomers with both ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) and ESO’s New Technology Telescope (NTT). This explosion occurred within a binary system, meaning the star that created the supernova and left behind a compact object had a companion star. The compact object and its companion continued to orbit one another, with the compact object regularly stealing matter from its companion when it gets close to it, as seen here.