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When Betelgeuse goes supernova - Printable Version

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When Betelgeuse goes supernova - Kyng - 12-09-2018

The universe is populated by billions upon billions of stars. One of the very largest stars is Betelgeuse, which sits 640 light years away from us, and has a diameter around 950 times that of the Sun. It's also the 9th-brightest star in the night sky, and you've almost certainly seen it, even if you didn't realise it: it's the star in the top left of Orion (the one marked in orange in this image. 

The other important thing about Betelgeuse is that it's at a very late stage of its life: it's expected to go supernova within the next million years (and indeed, it might already have gone supernova at some point within the last 640 years, and we'd be none the wiser :P ). Because it's so large, and because it's so close to Earth, this supernova would easily be the brightest ever to be seen from Earth. The following video by V101 Science shows, in 4k HD, just what it would look like: 



Quite spectacular, really :O . It'd produce a heck of a lot of radiation, but the good news is, it's just too far away to cause any real problems!


RE: When Betelgeuse goes supernova - Moonshroom - 12-09-2018

I'd be quite the spectacle when it finally comes to pass.

I guess we should call ourselves lucky to randomly exists at enough of a distance to watch this magnificent event without being completely crushed by it.


RE: When Betelgeuse goes supernova - Detective Osprey - 12-09-2018

Amazing, wish I could be around to see this.


RE: When Betelgeuse goes supernova - GrieferLord - 12-09-2018

this would be neat to see but like many things it is unknown when it will occur.


RE: When Betelgeuse goes supernova - Kyng - 12-30-2019

Apparently, Betelgeuse has started dimming, and astronomers aren't sure why. They think it might be a sign that the star is about to explode into a supernova:

https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/betelgeuse-star-night-sky-supernova-explosion-a9263626.html

However, there could be other explanations; for example, the star's brightness has always varied over the years, and this could simply be a more dramatic version of those same variations. Besides, even if it is an indication that the star's in the process of going supernova, there's no indication of how long that process might take: it could be thousands of years.


RE: When Betelgeuse goes supernova - 321tumbler - 12-30-2019

Now I realize this isn't scientifically correct, but maybe it's mourning the news that Beetlejuice will be closing in June. :P


RE: When Betelgeuse goes supernova - Detective Osprey - 12-31-2019

Poor Betelgeuse. As much as I love the star, it’d still be interesting to see it go into supernova.


RE: When Betelgeuse goes supernova - GrieferLord - 12-31-2019

well another point is that we wont truly know if and when betelgeuse goes supernova, with the distance to the star it could have already gone supernova and we wouldnt know it until the light has traveled to us. still it could be a winding down cycle of the stars life.


RE: When Betelgeuse goes supernova - Kyng - 06-30-2020

(12-30-2019, 12:07 PM)Kyng Wrote: Apparently, Betelgeuse has started dimming, and astronomers aren't sure why. They think it might be a sign that the star is about to explode into a supernova:

https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/betelgeuse-star-night-sky-supernova-explosion-a9263626.html

However, there could be other explanations; for example, the star's brightness has always varied over the years, and this could simply be a more dramatic version of those same variations. Besides, even if it is an indication that the star's in the process of going supernova, there's no indication of how long that process might take: it could be thousands of years.

And, six months later, we have our explanation. Apparently, it was due to giant cool patches (similar to sunspots on our own Sun). These eventually disappeared - and now, the star is back to full brightness:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-53218658

Seems we don't have to worry just yet :P .


RE: When Betelgeuse goes supernova - Kyng - 08-14-2020

And now, it turns out that the real explanation was even more mundane than 'cool spots'. In reality, the star just appeared to be dimming because a dust cloud was in the way:

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/aug/14/a-star-is-reborn-dust-cloud-blamed-for-dimming-of-betelgeuse

Okay, next time I dust off my model trains, I'll make sure there aren't any stray astronomers trying to take observations :lol: !