National Post:
In the biggest celestial show ever seen, dying star Betelgeuse will be visible even during the day for several months.
When it happens, it will be the astronomical event of the millennium. Betelgeuse, a red supergiant star in the constellation of Orion the Hunter, will explode into a supernova.
There won’t be any danger to Earth from some 650 light years away, but the dying star will shine almost as brightly as the moon, visible even during the day for several months. When it finally dims it will become invisible to the naked eye. The hunter, known to humans for at least 30,000 years, will have lost a shoulder. more
Woid is it’ll have an alcohol-injected 468ci Chevrolet V8, Weld wheels, and Hoosier drag slicks.
Oh… and a “Hoosier Daddy” bumper sticker!
Hopefully we can transition to net zero carbon ahead of schedule to avoid this disaster.
Oh, wait. It’s 650 light years away and expected to blow within a couple decades. That means it already happened. Oh well, I suppose there’s no point in getting an electric car now.
Well, it’s not exactly the Sweet Meteor of Death (SMOD), but at this point, I’ll take anything to end this nightmare.
Soon.
We’ll need more research money to get the date any closer.
TRF, and a big fat Rat Fink emblazoned on the side.
So, it happened around the year 1373?
That sucks. In early elementary school every student in class was assigned a constellation to study. Mine was Orion.
This reminds me of Hillary Clinton’s head when she lost the election. Good times!
I hope it’s more accurate than the “big one” earthquake predictions I’ve heard for 70 years.
It already happened about 650 years ago.
We’re just waiting for the return receipt.
To be clear, most scientists assume a slightly smaller size for Betelgeuse, meaning it may have some way to go before a supernova event – perhaps 100,000 years, though that is still a blink of an eye in cosmic terms.
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So, 100,000 years is soon? Why do they come up with these stories when no one reading it will be around to see it?
I predict September 2024.
NYT and WP see it as a new way to scare people to death.
People: It may be a good idea to seriously consider suicide before Betelguese blows up. Better off dead than alive when it hits.
Much ado about nothing. Such apocalyptic proclamations….clutch the pearls if you like, but don’t hold your breath. Just state that the thing will eventually happen +/-10,000 years. Definite maybe. Or considering the duration, just state that is a S.W.A.G.
It all winds down. In many variations; our own sun estimated to become a Red Giant and not go super nova.
See the Zeroeth Law of Thermodynamics.
@Tony R, It’s already gone and we just don’t know it.
I figure the second coming will be in September. But what year.
as for me … I’m reserving my seat, right now, at ‘Milliways’!
don’t want to miss this show!
I can’t believe no one has done it yet: Betelgeuse, Betelgeuse, Betelgeuse.
The word “Soon” is very subjective in this instance. From an astronomical point of view evidence that the star went Kaboom could arrive next week…or 100,000 years from now. There is simply no way for us to know. And since it’s 650 light years away it could have exploded 600 years ago…and we won’t know for another 50. Astronomy is a whole different world from what happens down here in the dirt.