Stars · Red supergiant
Betelgeuse
550 light-years · Light crosses it in 59 minutes
- Across
- 1.1 billion km
- Vs Earth
- 764× Sun
- Mass
- 17 Suns
Open Betelgeuse in Cosmic Scale
About
Betelgeuse is the red shoulder of Orion and the most famous star waiting to explode. It is only about 10 million years old but is already near the end: a supergiant, unstable, shedding its outer layers.
Will explode as a supernova within the next 100,000 years.
At a glance
| Distance | 550 light-years |
|---|---|
| Surface | 3,600 K |
| Brightness | Around 100,000 Suns |
| Mass | 16–19 Suns |
Did you know
- In 2019–2020 it dimmed so much that people noticed by eye; it had coughed out a cloud of dust that blocked its own light.
- When it does explode it will be visible in daylight for weeks — but it is far too distant to harm Earth.
- It was the first star other than the Sun to have its surface imaged.
Simulations
- A massive star explodes — How a star many times heavier than the Sun collapses and blows itself apart
Real photos
- Betelgeuse with a faint blue companion beside it, spotted by Gemini North in 2024 — a detection still being confirmed — International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA, Image Processing: M. Zamani (NSF NOIRLab) (CC BY 4.0) · source
- Betelgeuse before and after its Great Dimming of 2019–2020, VLT — ESO/M. Montargès et al. (CC BY 4.0) · source