Seldom Bucket
Well-Known Member
Betelgeuse, the tenth brightest star in the night sky and the second brightest in the constellation Orion, has been behaving a little oddly lately. Beginning in December of 2019, researchers from Villanova University noticed the red supergiant was dimming noticeably. This trend continued into the new year, with Betelgeuse dimming throughout January and February of 2020. eventually losing two-thirds of its brilliance.
From this point onward, Betelgeuse began to brighten again and returned to its typical visual brightness by April. And now, the massive star dimming once again, and ahead of schedule. In response, an international team of researchers recently conducted a study where they theorized that this pattern might be the result of Betelgeuse “sneezing” out dense clouds of hot gas which then cooled.
Some Astronomers Think Betelgeuse Dimmed Because it "Sneezed". And it Might be Getting Ready to do it Again
An international team of researchers has proposed a new explanation for why Betelgeuse has been mysteriously dimming, just as it started dimming again!
www.universetoday.com