Betelgeuse

25.10.2024

Betelgeuse

Why in the news?   

             Recent research has unveiled a surprising discovery about Betelgeuse that the star's enigmatic brightening and dimming patterns may be caused by an unseen companion star.

About Betelgeuse:

• It is a red supergiant star that forms the left shoulder of the constellation of Orion.
• It is one of the brightest stars in the night sky and one of the largest stars ever discovered.
• The star is approximately 650 light-years from Earth.
• The star is nearing the end of its life span, and when it dies, the resulting explosion will be bright enough to see during the day for weeks.
• It is one of the largest known stars, measuring more than 700 million miles (1.2 billion kilometers) in diameter.
• It is known for its periodic dimming and brightening up.
• It exhibits two distinct pulsation patterns: a short-term cycle of about a year and a longer six-year cycle.
• The researchers concluded that the longer cycle, known as a long secondary period, is likely caused by the Betelbuddy's (companion star) orbital motion through Betelgeuse's surrounding dust.

What is the Red supergiant star?

• A red giant forms after a star has run out of hydrogen fuel for nuclear fusion, and has begun the process of dying.
• They are evolved stars with masses between 10 and 25 times that of the Sun.
• A star classed as a supergiant may have a diameter several hundred times that of the Sun and a luminosity nearly 1,000,000 times as great.
• Supergiants are tenuous stars, and their lifetimes are probably only a few million years, extremely short on the scale of stellar evolution.
• These stars have cool extended atmospheres.

                                                                Source: India Today

Consider the following statements regarding Betelgeuse:

Statement-I:It is a red supergiant star known for its periodic dimming and brightening up.

Statement-II:It is located in the Ursa Major constellation.

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

A.Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, and Statement-II is the correct explanation for Statement-I.

B.Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, and Statement-II is not the correct explanation for Statement-I.

C.Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect.

D.Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct.

Answer C