NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope sees red supergiant star Betelgeuse slowly recovering after blowing its top
Hubble Space Telescope is one of the most talked about telescopes these days. The latest images from the telescope conclude that the bright red supergiant star Betelgeuse “blew its top” in 2019, shedding a significant amount of its visible surface and releasing a massive Surface Mass Ejection (SME). Let’s learn more about it!
More About Red Supergiant Star Betelgeuse
If Betelgeuse were to replace our sun, the enlarged late-stage star would extend all the way out beyond Jupiter’s orbit, but these stars die extremely quickly. It has a staggering diameter of over a billion miles. These new findings shed light on how red stars age, lose mass, and eventually supernovae when their nuclear fusion furnaces run out of fuel. The degree of mass loss has a significant impact on their fate.
Betelgeuse’s eruption emitted approximately 400 billion times the mass of a typical CME. A large portion of the star’s surface was blown away, leaving a massive cool patch and a dust cloud all around it. As a result, Betelgeuse’s brightness dropped dramatically, which even amateur observers noticed.
The dimming was actually a sign of a previous smaller explosion, which is now more visible. While dramatic, Betelgeuse’s demise is not imminent, according to Dupree, because it launched a portion of itself into space. In reality, the star is recovering from the explosion.
When Betelgeuse eventually blows itself up, it will be visible from Earth even during the day. Liked this post? Don’t forget to check out our other short stories in our Quick Read section.