When Will Betelgeuse Explode?

Betelgeuse will not go quietly. It may not go soon, either.

Betelgeuse, as seen by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Credit: ESO/Digitized Sky Survey 2. Acknowledgment: Davide De Martin.

One day, they say, Betelgeuse will explode. It promises to be spectacular: the star will detonate with the force of ten million suns; burning bright enough to be visible across half the known universe. From Earth it will appear to glow more intensely than the full moon; luminous enough to cast shadows at night and…