Betelgeuse could explode much sooner than thought

Hardly any other star employs such researchers Betelgeuse. Hope remains red giant It can explode in our lives and anyone’s direct observation Supernova make it possible. This is again run by a team of Tohoku University in Japan and University of Geneva in Switzerland.

The key to their hypothesis that the star might explode earlier than expected lies in its presence brightness fluctuations. There is a total 4 periods a favour. each other 2200, 420, 230 And 185 days. It is generally accepted that 420 days is its primary cycle. However, the new study suspects it could be up to 2,200 days.

A young star with a short life

The period is crucial to the star’s current size. Betelgeuse with 10 million years Too small for a star (our Sun is finite 4.6 billion years old). However, it has been shown 16.5 and 19 solar masses And it continues to expand until it explodes. While in 420 days of 800 to 900 times the solar radius Running out, in 2200 days that will be it 1300 times.

Find one in Asterisk Nuclear fusion Rather, through radiation pressure arises outward. This one works gravity from the star It conflicts, which is why it swells more and more, burning more material.

Will it be carbon core Burning, researchers believe, Betelgeuse is about to explode. Then, since there is no more material to burn, the radiation pressure decreases. If it really does happen, then a supernova could happen in our lifetime. Then the star falls inside contracts together. According to the study, Betelgeuse remains one a few hundred years.

An impressive sight in the night sky

The supernova will end several weeks with with the naked eye Visible. It’s actually very easy to observe Betelgeuse from Earth. it is in constellation Oriononly estimate 650 light years away away from Earth. It glows reddish-orange in the night sky.

➤ Read more: Supernova Messier 101: How to see an exploding star

The first criticism of the study

The researchers study is another pre-release (here), which still needs scientific testing. The first objection comes from a team from Konkoli Observatory in Budapest (More here). You will see errors in the radius readings.

Until now, it has not been possible to finally clarify how big Betelgeuse actually is. Depending on the wavelength at which the star is observed, different values ​​can be set. Therefore, it is still difficult to say which stage he is in. high Study leader Hideyuki Sayo But with additional observations, it is possible to determine how much carbon Betelgeuse can still burn.

Regular fluctuations in brightness

In the end he took care of it 2019 to great excitement. The star dimmed sharply. It turned out later that Betelgeuse simply had to “sneeze”. threw part of Surface decreased, making the star appear dimmer as seen from Earth for a few months.

➤ Read more: A ‘sneeze’ instead of a supernova: that’s why Betelgeuse is darker

On the contrary, Betelgeuse has arrived April 2023 maximum brightness. It has shone more than 1.5 times and hopes it will explode again. However, NASA has put the brakes on hope here, too. They suspect it at least 100,000 years will take.

➤ Read more: Betelgeuse at the end of its life