"The Star" by H. G. Wells is an apocalyptic short story published in 1897. When a mysterious luminous object enters the Solar System and collides with Neptune, it creates a massive fireball hurtling toward Earth. As the new star grows brighter each day, scientists initially dismiss the danger—until a mathematician discovers their fatal miscalculation. The approaching celestial body unleashes catastrophic heat and gravitational forces, melting ice caps, triggering earthquakes, and flooding coastlines. Can humanity survive this cosmic collision, or will civilization be extinguished forever? (This is an automatically generated summary.)