Diwali: NASA's "festival of lights" from up above is a sparkling starfield

Diwali 2021: NASA shared an image of stars captured by Hubble Space Telescope. (Image credit: Photo tweeted by @NASA)

US space agency NASA today sent its Diwali wishes with a stunning image of a cluster of stars.

The photo is of a densely packed, roughly spherical collection of stars, that lies close to the center of the Milky Way. It was captured by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope.

“Happy #Diwali to all who celebrate! This stellar festival of lights, called a globular cluster, was captured by @NASAHubble. It contains a densely-packed collection of colorful stars close to the heart of the Milky Way,” NASA tweeted.

Happy #Diwali to all who celebrate! This stellar festival of lights, called a globular cluster, was captured by @NASAHubble. It contains a densely-packed collection of colorful stars close to the heart of the Milky Way: https://t.co/0JGYRhvl4x pic.twitter.com/g4MLMxNkkK

— NASA (@NASA) November 4, 2021

People responded to the Diwali wish, with some terming the photo the real festival of lights.

“The real #FestivalOfLights is what we see during the #night time in the clear #sky. Sadly it's difficult to see that because of the fake one we celebrate on #Earth by #bursting #crackers,” Twitter user Pragyan said.

The real #FestivalOfLights is what we se during the #night time in the clear #sky
Sadly it's difficult to see that because of the fake one we celebrate on #Earth by #bursting #crackers
Let's celebrate the real one this time
Happy #Diwali

— Pragyan (@Sc0rp10n_py) November 5, 2021

The point made by the user seem valid as pollution levels shot through the roof in cities like Delhi after people celebrated Diwali with firecrackers, in violation of the cracker ban in the capital amid a sharp increase in fumes from farm fires.

NASA's Diwali post received over 1,500 retweets and over 3,000 'likes'.

US President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and Apple chief Tim Cook were among those who wished people on Diwali. Biden posted on Twitter a picture of him lighting diyas (earthen lamps) along with First Lady Jill Biden at the White House.

Diwali, or Deepavali, marks the victory of good over evil, light over darkness and knowledge over ignorance.