Nasa reveals stunning close-up of Orion – with fiery glimpse of mysteriously ‘dimming’ Betelgeuse star
IF you think the Orion constellation seems impressive from Earth then take a look at this close up shot.
Nasa revealed the following image as part of its ‘Astronomy Picture of the Day’ series and it does not disappoint.
Nasa wrote alongside the image: “The constellation of Orion is much more than three stars in a row.
“It is a direction in space that is rich with impressive nebulas.
“To better appreciate this well-known swath of sky, an extremely long exposure was taken over many clear nights in 2013 and 2014.
“After 212 hours of camera time and an additional year of processing, the featured 1400-exposure collage spanning over 40 times the angular diameter of the Moon emerged.”
One of the standout points in the image is the big orange star called Betelgeuse.
Betelgeuse has been a red supergiant star for 40,000 years.
Eventually, it will burn enough of its hydrogen to make its core collapse in and trigger a supernova.
When the star dimmed quite recently, scientists started to speculate that it may be ready to explode.
However, this was soon dismissed and astronomers agreed that an explosion in a hundred thousand years is more likely.
But a star dimming does indicate that something must be occurring so this newly detected burst of gravitational waves has brought Betelgeuse’s fate back into question.
Three bright stars in the middle of the Orion constellation make up the famous Orion’s Belt.
These stars are called Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka, sometimes referred to as Zeta, Epsilon and Delta.
They can be seen to the right of the image, just below the centre.
However, Nasa’s image has helped to reveal many more highlights of the constellation for stargazers to take a look at.
The space agency continued: “Of the many interesting details that have become visible, one that particularly draws the eye is Barnard’s Loop, the bright red circular filament arcing down from the middle.
“The Rosette Nebula is not the giant red nebula near the top of the image — that is a larger but lesser known nebula known as Lambda Orionis.
“The Rosette Nebula is visible, though: it is the red and white nebula on the upper left.
“The bright orange star just above the frame centre is Betelgeuse, while the bright blue star on the lower right is Rigel.
“Other famous nebulas visible include the Witch Head Nebula, the Flame Nebula, the Fox Fur Nebula, and, if you know just where to look, the comparatively small Horsehead Nebula.”
What is a supernova?
Here's what you need to know...
- A supernova is a powerful and bright stellar explosion
- It occurs during the last evolutionary stages of a massive star, or when a white dwarf goes into runaway nuclear fusion
- The original object collapses into either a neutron star or black hole, or is completely destroyed
- The “peak luminosity” of a supernova is comparable to an entire galaxy, before fading over several weeks or months
- Just three naked-eye supernova events have been observed in the Milky Way during the last thousand years
- The most recent of which was Kepler’s Supernova in 1604
- A supernova remnant is the structure resulting from the explosion of a star in a supernova
- It is bounded by an expanding shock wave
- And it’s made from ejected material expanding fromm the exposion, and interstellar material it sweeps up along the way
In other space news, Nasa astronauts could build Moon base using their own PEE and lunar dirt to make ‘space concrete’.
Space Force has successfully launched its first mission since its establishment as a US military service.
And, the Hubble Space Telescope has revealed new data about what may be the most powerful cosmic storm in the universe.
Do you have a favourite constellation? Let us know in the comments…
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