Oddly dimming star isn't about to explode after all

[Judi Lynn]

After weeks of inexplicable dimming, the star Betelgeuse in the constellation Orion is perking back up, suggesting that it won’t go supernova anytime soon.

BY NADIA DRAKE
PUBLISHED FEBRUARY 26, 2020

Rumors of Betelgeuse’s impending death have been greatly exaggerated. The red supergiant star appears to be in no danger of imminently exploding, even though a recent, dramatic dip in brightness hinted that it could be on its last legs. The latest observations reveal instead that the star is starting to regain its former light.

“Betelgeuse has definitely stopped dimming and has started to slowly brighten,” a team reported on February 22 in the Astronomer’s Telegram. “Observations of all kinds continue to be needed to understand the nature of this unprecedented dimming episode and what this surprising star will do next.”



Orion rises above Haleakala Crater in Hawaii with bright stars Betelgeuse and Rigel.
PHOTOGRAPH BY BABAK TAFRESHI, NAT GEO IMAGE COLLECTION

With Betelgeuse’s light on the rise, astronomers are now hoping to figure out what caused such a precipitous drop in brightness at the end of 2019—while simultaneously dealing with the disappointment of not witnessing a nearby supernova.

“I would love to say it’s going to go supernova,” says Andrea Dupree of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. “We don’t have much information at all about what happens right before, the night before, the week before, or a month before a supernova.”

More:
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2020/02/oddly-dimming-star-betelgeuse-wont-go-supernova-after-all/?cmpid=org=ngp::mc=crm-email::src=ngp::cmp=editorial::add=Science_20200304&rid=FEF3402516DD393FC5D933E45FF75D5D

[Wounded Bear]

1. Maybe just a cloud of dust passing between them and us...nt

[lordsummerisle]

2. It's 642 light years away

so anything about "going supernova" should be taken in this context...

[FiveGoodMen]

5. And if it went supernova 641 years ago, we'll be seeing that soon

[krispos42]

3. Dammit.

I was hoping this would happen in my lifetime.

[Layzeebeaver]

4. Simplest explanation

is that the aliens had only just completed their first section of their Dyson Sphere. Now it has moved over bit while they start on the next section.

Hey... It's somewhat possible, although highly improbable.