noun
countless stars; starry sky
Poetic or literary term for a sky full of stars, often evoking a sense of wonder or vastness.
夜空一面に星屑が散りばめられていた。
The night sky was studded with countless stars.
星屑は宇宙空間に漂う微小な固体粒子だ。
Stardust is tiny solid particles floating in outer space.
星空 refers to a starry sky in general, while 星屑 emphasizes the countless individual stars or the poetic image of stardust.
Compound of 星 (hoshi, 'star') and 屑 (kuzu, 'scrap, waste'). The reading hoshi becomes hoshi- in combination, and kuzu voices to guzu due to rendaku. The term originally referred to tiny fragments like stardust and later gained a poetic sense for a multitude of stars.