Hubble Sees a Neutron Star Alone in Space

This is the first direct look, in visible light, at a lone neutron star, as seen by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. The Hubble results show the star is very hot (1.2 million degrees Fahrenheit at the surface), and can be no larger than 16.8 miles (28 kilometers) across. These results prove that the object must be a neutron star, because no other known type of object can be this hot, small, and dim (below 25th magnitude).