We can't even agree on a globe earth so I'm struck by our ability to know anything at all. We'd need more thumbs in order to know exactly what's going on 500 light years away. Evolution, not a revolution.
I've been lucky enough to catch Halley's comet, two total eclipses, and both sets of aurora. Adding a naked-eye supernova would be cool, but I don't want to seem greedy, especially if it costs us Orion. Maybe something else will oblige us by blowing up?
There aren't any other naked-eye stars that are likely to go boom any time soon. We have a few candidate massive stars, but they're all well-within the main sequence and likely have millions of years of life left. By the time they go, it's possible they won't even be in our solar neighborhood any more.
I don't want to lose Betelgeuse either but if it's going to go I'd love to see it. What I really hope for is that it keeps giving astronomers interesting puzzles like this and keeps people interested and gets us funding for ever bigger and better telescopes of all kinds. If it dies before we are really ready to observe as closely as possible and we miss something it has to teach us it would be an epic tragedy.
Just to clarify: I am well aware that there have been other supernovae recorded. But Betelgeuse would be the first supernova we have observed that formed from a star we had previously known. All other supernovae for the last 300 thousand years have appeared in the sky out of nowhere, their progenitor stars not detected until later.
Betelgeuse is our only candidate for a close supernova on anything like an astonomically short timescale, so I would like to see it explode, not for the spectacle (though that would be cool), but for what it could learn from it. I think losing a star in the sky - even one as prominent as Betelgeuse - is a worthwhile price to pay for that knowledge.
Thanks Nick, I like your take. It seems almost like everyone is panting with excitement hoping she will end soon. While I like the idea of an unprecedented light show, the loss of this particular star would indeed diminish the night sky our descendants inherit.
Your videos are amazing! One week we delve in details of the past, and next week we are at the forefront of astronomy. Did not see this in any other channel. They just have to catch up to you! Keep on, you are appreciated.
It wouldn't be unique, in the year 185 CE, astronomers recorded the appearance of a bright star in the sky, and observed that it took about eight months to fade from the sky. We can correlate this to SN 185, a supernova. While called a 'guest star' by some of the observers, it would have been guessed to be visual before its supernova. Just being 'one of the lesser stars'
Since Betelgeuse long ago puffed up to Red giant, any close proximity planet harboring lifeforms of any sort, would have been extinguished by now. This being the case, a supernova would benefit observing intelligent other lifeforms...us. I had the immense pleasure of observing comet Hyakutake in 96 in all its glory...too bad the location had the weather at about 20 degrees Fahrenheit, but I did get some nice pictures...but the scale of the event never compares to an image. I do so wish Betelgeuse would light up the sky for my son who was born a year after my comet observation.
I kind of thought maybe the 100,000 year prediction for Betelgeuese to explode might be a bit of a conservative estimate . . . because of the remarkably fast change in color since Ptolemy's days. Betelgeuse changed colors from like yellow to orange/red in only a thousand years. That's pretty fast change. I had this in the back of my head before the resent idea that Betelgeuese could be in carbon cycle.
My son and I met your father here in DFW the other day. Turns out I have watched your vids before! Keep up the good work. So informative and well done!
I thought you even said the Chinese saw one like a thousand years ago. It is a beautiful constellation. He had his bow ready and showed the way to me too many times…
Well, I don't 'wish death' on that star or for that matter one of my favorite constellations, but if it's gonna go soon, I *would* be a bit thrilled to see it. Maybe instead it'll teach us some other things and that's fine too. (Also, come to think of it, it'd probably further- freak out a lot of people that are presently being very un-nice to people like me in very insane ways, just now anyway, so we could give it a miss too.)
Even if it doesn't go supernova in our life time, I am glad that we are able to use it as a subject to continue and expand our understanding of how things work in the universe.
I love how you always bring a sensible, human element to these heady topics, Nick. Great video as always. While I would love to see a brilliant supernova in my life time you make a good point. Orion just wouldn't be the same without its beautiful, brilliant armpit. In the end our hopes and wishes, one way or another mean nothing. The Universe will do what the Universe wants to do. We're just here to watch and learn.
Since it's thought to be between 500 and 600 light years away, it probably went supernova back in the 1400's.. but, if it is still there, it will not be until around 2400 when people actually get to see it go Kaboom, assuming it goes Caboom today..it will be the year 2600 when people find out.
No one explains what is going on in the world of astronomy as well as you Nick 👍 Its a good day every time I have a fresh ParallaxNick video for breaklfast. Only wish you had the time to do even more on currant events like this. Your skill in making things easyly understandible is unbeaten, and your good work is wery much apresiated. (pls excuse any typos and spelling errors.. norwegian dyslectic here..)
What an incredible gift to be alive if this happens holy shit. Also I won't be able to shake the Portends and Omens if we watch the death of a star in our lifetime, idc how much science we've done, the universe is inherently spiritual and mystical to me.
It's amazing how much astronomy has progressed in the last 100 years- just that short time ago we didn't even know that galaxies existed beyond our own- Look how far we've come in 100 years
Tantalizing! Oh what a moment that would be though, to be alive to witness such a massive event. It would change the world I think, make people think about space. They'd have to!
You really are top draw, The big cheese, head honcho, top dog, kingpin, you're the boss.... what I'm trying to say is, I like the cut of your jib, Sir.
Nick I always look with anticipation on your videos. While I love history, my favorite are the astronomical commentaries. Obviously it’s best when such astrophysical commentaries tie in with history. Lol Love the channel
Imagine the wonder and awe that a Betelgeuse supernova will engender! We may lose a beautiful star, but it’s death will also be an act of creation. Namely, thousands of young people who choose to study astronomy, and millions of older ones inspired to learn more about our universe.
The reason that many supernovas are so bright is because Silicon-28 fuses in radioactive Nickel-56, NOT Iron-56. Then the Iron-56 decays to Cobalt-56 and that to Iron-56 AFTER the star blows up. Nickel-56 has a half life of 6 days by emitting a positron, which will annihilate with an electron and make two 511 KeV photons. Cobalt-56 has a half life of 77 days and also emits a positron. This steady radioactivity supplies all the brightness until it runs out.
Please...... Lets remind ourselves that what we wish and when events occur are not going effect something that has probably already occurred. We are just an audience to a show that happened hundreds of years ago.
One slightly sparkly bit of light in the sky is the same as any other for me, I'm more interested in planetary bodies, so I say bring on the boom! 😂 Though having said that, I bet it won't happen for another couple of thousand years just to spite me 😅
If the current variables are an indication of a transition to NE/SI fusion we might get a show in a few decades. But inaccuracies in our knowledge of real properties and in current modeling leave a big ???
Dang that is a big star. 1,100x or 1,400x the size of the sun…. That would be crazy if it did explode and we would have a light in the sky the size of a 1/4 moon. Dang that would be wild. The chances of that happening in our life time are rare. Those stars last a long long time.
@parallaxnick637 mostly agreed. But I've watched some videos by Dr. Robitaille (? Think that's right) on his Sky Scholar channel that really have me questioning the our understanding of the internal dynamics of stars. Honestly, I only watch you, Sky Scholar, SuspiciousObserver, Sixty Symbols and David Butler's channel. I find y'all to be the most sincere in your opinions and open and honest with factual information that I enjoy so very much ♥️♥️💯
There have been several accounts of novae in history. But all of them were, well, novae. New. They just appeared out of nowhere. Betelgeuse will be the first star we as a species will watch go supernova.
Do I take it your 'death of a star' criterion here excludes Type I SN? Or is this category restricted to stars originally having been long visible to the unaided eye? I forget what type SN 1987a was, but it was an easy naked eye event in our companion galaxy, the Large Magellanic Cloud. I was fortunate to see it--at peak brightness no less--due to having already booked on a trip to Australia with a group of astrophotography before the star popped off.
On this week's episode, we find PNick repeatedly answering the same frustrating question about witnessed supernovae until his head goes supernova. Tune in next week for a glimpse at the PNick nebula. Don't fret, Nick. At least all of the comments with the same already answered question are good for the algorithm.
It is cruel to wish for it, but a lot of astronomy freaks, want to witness this supernova. Even if it means losing a lifelong friend. Curiosity has no remorse or regrets.
imagine the generational divide... from astro nerds to general population who occasionally look up at the stars - being born and growing up knowing that the night sky looked different for you patents and teachers 🤔 what an interesting effect!
We kinda already have that. Anyone born after 1992 has grown up in a universe with actual, real exoplanets in it. When I was a kid they were just in science fiction books.
Funny. Commented on Universe Today that I was probably one of the few rooting for Betelgeuse to hold on. Though I think that when it comes to giants, things like measuring their diameter, or talking about extended atmosphere... all becomes rather nebulous. I'd like to see someone produce a graph of material density against the distance away from the core of the star.
Well, Betelgeuse is out of view currently and won't be viewable until late July in the early morning hours. It is too close to our Sun in the sky to view.
the more we think we know, the less we seem to understand. (I'll see if I can get in touch with the Universe Masters. I may have misplaced their number though. I wonder if their gmail account is still active)
Our species H. sapiens only has some 200,000 years of existance per the archaeological and paleontological record: the firs known modern human was Omo 1. Irhoud humans from 300,000 years ago in Morocco are not our species, even if surely closely related, they lack our traits such as globular head or a chin (which are related traits, as you need a chin to get rid of excessive muscles in the face that limit our pathway to brain expansion). Don't go for the hype: nothing has changed since old good Richard Leakey discovered Omo 1: we have a better understanding of the wider context (if we bother using our brains instead of bandwagoning the media hype) but that's about it.
It has to go sometime so love Orion as much as I do, I'd like to say goodbye to it. Not looking forward to the heights of human stupidity that will be displayed though.
Imagine a world like ours, rich in apocalyptic phantasies of disease, nuclear war and world spanning conspiracies -- being the one facing a -once in a lifetime- _once in a species/eon/300k years (or so)_ supernova illuminating the day... Can you picture the insanity this could feed into?!? Other than that, I count myself inwith the camp of "supernova _optimists"._ Many people love fireworks but scream inside well controlled rollercoasters. I rather enjoy the cosmic lightshow and buckle up for some -- if nothing else -- _interesting_ times... Anyone got any popcorn? (I won't hold my breath for it to happen, though; I'm still a pyrrhonean, after all!)
But what if there is another star behind Betelgeuse that it was covering the whole time? It will take its place in the constelation. i want that supernova shit to happen asap.
Dont get me wrong, its a beautiful star but the void .. is so enticing. A lesson about or own mortality an entire generation will learn. At the same time. It might trigger the paradigm change this world needs.
The last death of a star see circa 300,000 years ago, what about the Crab Nebula? Historical records revealed that a new star bright enough to be seen in the daytime had been recorded in the same part of the sky as the Crab Nebula by Chinese astronomers on 4 July 1054.
I doubt you have to worry about that. If our sun were 46 years old instead of 4.6 billion years old, Betelgeuse would be less than a month old. Any life that managed to form on it likely still hasn't figured out the whole "cell nucleus" thing
@@parallaxnick637 You're right, but what about any solar systems within a light year or two of Betelgeuse, that could potentially get affected by the supernova?
@@phoule76 There don't appear to be any stars particularly close (Stack exchange suggests the nearest star is about 18 ly away). That said, Betelgeuse is so bright, and its precise location so uncertain that there could be closer stars that we can't see. All I can say in reassurance is that, if they were old enough to develop complex life in the first place, then they've already seen off dozens of supernovae and it's highly unlikely, given Betelgeuse's short lifespan, that they're anywhere near it now.
Great explanation. Thank you. Always love your videos. I think those hoping for The Boom outside of relevant disciplines are having a modern day equivalent of the public executions of medieval times. Even the most parochial of questions under academic study have disagreements. It would be boring otherwise. I see all camps on This one as adding information for consideration, and the Letter and Notes wars across journals will generate new thoughts and questions that ultimately will be of benefit. But I also am skeptical of The Black Hole Gap explanation. I personally think the whole "we are not in a privileged position in time or space" argument has, and continues, to have a warping effect in astronomy. Whether privilege or luck is the word to use, whether factors of our planet, orbit, star, galaxy position, point in time, laws of our universe, we exist because they are just so. I am an athiest and quite comfortable with my lack of belief, and quite comfortable with others who do believe in something, so it seems to me that "we are not special" is an argument still too tied in defensive roots of religion. We exist because everything is just so. If it wasn't, we wouldn't be here. It's not about privilege ir really being "special", it just is what it is. But for the only life we are aware of, these are the narrow parameters we need. Not many other stars look like good candidates, tidally locked planets are a bust, we happen to exist coz our little neighbourhood is quiet, the big boomy stars have all gone boom anywhere near us.... So, relax and enjoy our unremarkable remarkable boringness surrounded by tens of light years of angry red dwarfs with tidally locked planets!
Our cosmological models are spoken of with such confidence and certainty- even as they are modern creation epics, none are right and none are wrong so long as they fit observations. But it is here that the truth of the matter is revealed: we’ve come so far and know so much yet our ideas are inherently assumptions built on uncertainties extrapolated over time and space. The layman is completely unaware of the aching mysteries in modern solar physics. I won’t list them although suffice it to say to even construct a computational model of our own sun, we must cheat on the parameters. So while I don’t exactly scoff at diagrams of stellar fusion over time, I do worry when it is used as a roadmap to supernova. Thankfully, in this case, we do appear to be safe in any event. But even that has it’s uncertainties. Side note: Betelgeuse is spectacular isn’t it? A roiling and barely contained gravitational well of mystery and awesomeness.
I wouldn't necessarily compare our cosmological models to creation myths, simply because no one ever throws out a creation myth when it's disproven. Everything else I agree with though :)
4:12 what is this animation? this is not the first time i've seen a star depicted as being non-spherical, but i can never find more information on the topic
I’m struck by our inability to come to a concrete conclusion here. Turns out knowing what exactly is going on 500 light years away isn’t easy
True, but it's not like we're dealing with a large sample size here for us to go by
It's 1423, 600 years ago.
We can't even agree on a globe earth so I'm struck by our ability to know anything at all.
We'd need more thumbs in order to know exactly what's going on 500 light years away.
Evolution, not a revolution.
I'm struck by your inabilty to pay attention to detail. The video clearly stated that Betelgeuse is about '600' light years away 6:20. 🤭
I've been lucky enough to catch Halley's comet, two total eclipses, and both sets of aurora. Adding a naked-eye supernova would be cool, but I don't want to seem greedy, especially if it costs us Orion. Maybe something else will oblige us by blowing up?
TI went down to Plymouth in 1999 to see a total eclipse.
Cloudy.
@@K1lostream I went to Northern Finland for a week to see the aurora at maximum. 100% cloud for 7 days.
@@K1lostreamthat is fucking brutal ! Sorry to hear that!
@@tbjtbj7930brutal!
There aren't any other naked-eye stars that are likely to go boom any time soon. We have a few candidate massive stars, but they're all well-within the main sequence and likely have millions of years of life left. By the time they go, it's possible they won't even be in our solar neighborhood any more.
I don't want to lose Betelgeuse either but if it's going to go I'd love to see it. What I really hope for is that it keeps giving astronomers interesting puzzles like this and keeps people interested and gets us funding for ever bigger and better telescopes of all kinds. If it dies before we are really ready to observe as closely as possible and we miss something it has to teach us it would be an epic tragedy.
_"Fainting spells."_ Love the humor. And, of course, your writing is a pleasure to listen to
Just to clarify: I am well aware that there have been other supernovae recorded. But Betelgeuse would be the first supernova we have observed that formed from a star we had previously known. All other supernovae for the last 300 thousand years have appeared in the sky out of nowhere, their progenitor stars not detected until later.
Your videos have been top notch for so many years. Thanks for all you do to keep making them.
Betelgeuse is our only candidate for a close supernova on anything like an astonomically short timescale, so I would like to see it explode, not for the spectacle (though that would be cool), but for what it could learn from it. I think losing a star in the sky - even one as prominent as Betelgeuse - is a worthwhile price to pay for that knowledge.
I'd love to see it. At the same time I agree that Orion won't look right.
Thanks Nick, I like your take. It seems almost like everyone is panting with excitement hoping she will end soon. While I like the idea of an unprecedented light show, the loss of this particular star would indeed diminish the night sky our descendants inherit.
You, sir, are a poet and a most magnificent one at that.
I want it to explode, I don't have decades to wait
Your videos are amazing! One week we delve in details of the past, and next week we are at the forefront of astronomy. Did not see this in any other channel. They just have to catch up to you! Keep on, you are appreciated.
He seemingly pays for the lack of specialization with a resulting low subscriber count but we fortunate few that are here are always enthralled.
1572 Tycho supernova in Cassiopeia- Star unseen(no telescopes) at that time until light of explosion reached earth- Thanks Nick
Two competing narratives:
1. Meredith Joyce narrative: Kitchen sink drama.
2. Hideyuki Sayo narrative: Godzilla.
Thoroughly enjoying all your content.
Thank you Sir.
🇦🇺🙏👍🤙
It wouldn't be unique, in the year 185 CE, astronomers recorded the appearance of a bright star in the sky, and observed that it took about eight months to fade from the sky. We can correlate this to SN 185, a supernova. While called a 'guest star' by some of the observers, it would have been guessed to be visual before its supernova. Just being 'one of the lesser stars'
I knew this was going to be confusing. This will be the first time we have seen a star visible to the naked eye go supernova.
It's appreciated the work you do. Keep it up. Like the current(modern) topic.
Since Betelgeuse long ago puffed up to Red giant, any close proximity planet harboring lifeforms of any sort, would have been extinguished by now. This being the case, a supernova would benefit observing intelligent other lifeforms...us. I had the immense pleasure of observing comet Hyakutake in 96 in all its glory...too bad the location had the weather at about 20 degrees Fahrenheit, but I did get some nice pictures...but the scale of the event never compares to an image. I do so wish Betelgeuse would light up the sky for my son who was born a year after my comet observation.
I kind of thought maybe the 100,000 year prediction for Betelgeuese to explode might be a bit of a conservative estimate . . . because of the remarkably fast change in color since Ptolemy's days. Betelgeuse changed colors from like yellow to orange/red in only a thousand years. That's pretty fast change.
I had this in the back of my head before the resent idea that Betelgeuese could be in carbon cycle.
My son and I met your father here in DFW the other day. Turns out I have watched your vids before! Keep up the good work. So informative and well done!
Well, hello! Nice to meet you, though for the record you likely met my stepfather, not my father. My father's British :-)
Does the crab nebula not count?
We didn't see the star before it exploded.
I was thinking the same thing and was dismayed that Nick was being so uncharacteristically sloppy. But, phew, Nick cleared up the question her.
We only found the body
@@zch7491😂😂
my thoughts exactly
I thought you even said the Chinese saw one like a thousand years ago. It is a beautiful constellation. He had his bow ready and showed the way to me too many times…
Yes they did, but not the star that preceded it.
Well, I don't 'wish death' on that star or for that matter one of my favorite constellations, but if it's gonna go soon, I *would* be a bit thrilled to see it. Maybe instead it'll teach us some other things and that's fine too.
(Also, come to think of it, it'd probably further- freak out a lot of people that are presently being very un-nice to people like me in very insane ways, just now anyway, so we could give it a miss too.)
Even if it doesn't go supernova in our life time, I am glad that we are able to use it as a subject to continue and expand our understanding of how things work in the universe.
Poetic ending but: Sorry i still want fireworks.
I love how you always bring a sensible, human element to these heady topics, Nick. Great video as always. While I would love to see a brilliant supernova in my life time you make a good point. Orion just wouldn't be the same without its beautiful, brilliant armpit. In the end our hopes and wishes, one way or another mean nothing. The Universe will do what the Universe wants to do. We're just here to watch and learn.
Since it's thought to be between 500 and 600 light years away, it probably went supernova back in the 1400's.. but, if it is still there, it will not be until around 2400 when people actually get to see it go Kaboom, assuming it goes Caboom today..it will be the year 2600 when people find out.
It came through on my feed right away!
No one explains what is going on in the world of astronomy as well as you Nick 👍
Its a good day every time I have a fresh ParallaxNick video for breaklfast.
Only wish you had the time to do even more on currant events like this.
Your skill in making things easyly understandible is unbeaten, and your good work is wery much apresiated.
(pls excuse any typos and spelling errors.. norwegian dyslectic here..)
Good, I thought it was just me. I don't want to outlive the stars!
What an incredible gift to be alive if this happens holy shit.
Also I won't be able to shake the Portends and Omens if we watch the death of a star in our lifetime, idc how much science we've done, the universe is inherently spiritual and mystical to me.
Damn you're good at this. I have seen a few discussion on this topic recently but none as poetic and beautiful as yours.
A beautiful recap of the latest Betelgeuse news.
I sure felt weird the other day ,like the world was like a roller coaster vison.
It's amazing how much astronomy has progressed in the last 100 years- just that short time ago we didn't even know that galaxies existed beyond our own- Look how far we've come in 100 years
The question really is, has it already gone boom?
We'll know soon...
... within the next 600-odd years
@@PeloquinDavidi will wait with a bated breath
Tantalizing! Oh what a moment that would be though, to be alive to witness such a massive event. It would change the world I think, make people think about space. They'd have to!
You really are top draw, The big cheese, head honcho, top dog, kingpin, you're the boss.... what I'm trying to say is, I like the cut of your jib, Sir.
Been waiting for more star videos 👍
Nick I always look with anticipation on your videos. While I love history, my favorite are the astronomical commentaries. Obviously it’s best when such astrophysical commentaries tie in with history. Lol
Love the channel
Imagine the wonder and awe that a Betelgeuse supernova will engender!
We may lose a beautiful star, but it’s death will also be an act of creation.
Namely, thousands of young people who choose to study astronomy, and millions of older ones inspired to learn more about our universe.
I wonder how wildlife would react to this new, additional light in the sky.
Remember guys play hard to get, we don’t want it to know we want it to blow up
I'm ok with it, especially if its replaced by a beautiful new nebula.
The reason that many supernovas are so bright is because Silicon-28 fuses in radioactive Nickel-56, NOT Iron-56.
Then the Iron-56 decays to Cobalt-56 and that to Iron-56 AFTER the star blows up.
Nickel-56 has a half life of 6 days by emitting a positron, which will annihilate with an electron and make two 511 KeV photons.
Cobalt-56 has a half life of 77 days and also emits a positron.
This steady radioactivity supplies all the brightness until it runs out.
Thank you
Are you kidding? I'm rooting for a supernova, visible to the naked eye, in my lifetime!
Please...... Lets remind ourselves that what we wish and when events occur are not going effect something that has probably already occurred. We are just an audience to a show that happened hundreds of years ago.
One slightly sparkly bit of light in the sky is the same as any other for me, I'm more interested in planetary bodies, so I say bring on the boom! 😂
Though having said that, I bet it won't happen for another couple of thousand years just to spite me 😅
This would be amazing 😮
I really wish it would go boom so we could redirect our interest from it to reconciling with indigenous peoples.
It's a shame that so many reports wildly inaccurate. People just pick and choose sound bites and repeat inaccuracies or just pure falsehoods.
If the current variables are an indication of a transition to NE/SI fusion we might get a show in a few decades. But inaccuracies in our knowledge of real properties and in current modeling leave a big ???
Woot!! i love this topic so much
When we say Betelgeuse just increased its brightness we really mean that it occurred 642.5 years ago
If the James Webb telescope proved anything, its that we really don't know Jack Squat about what is really going on in the universe.
Dang that is a big star. 1,100x or 1,400x the size of the sun…. That would be crazy if it did explode and we would have a light in the sky the size of a 1/4 moon. Dang that would be wild. The chances of that happening in our life time are rare. Those stars last a long long time.
The hubris of man thinking he can model or understand the internal workings of a star 600+ light years away... 😂😂
Stars are fairly simple in the grand scheme of things. And if Betelgeuse does go supernova, we will have a lot ore data to work with.
@parallaxnick637 mostly agreed. But I've watched some videos by Dr. Robitaille (? Think that's right) on his Sky Scholar channel that really have me questioning the our understanding of the internal dynamics of stars.
Honestly, I only watch you, Sky Scholar, SuspiciousObserver, Sixty Symbols and David Butler's channel. I find y'all to be the most sincere in your opinions and open and honest with factual information that I enjoy so very much
♥️♥️💯
Well done.
I feel like I remember hearing about medieval accounts of a big bright thing in the sky?
There have been several accounts of novae in history. But all of them were, well, novae. New. They just appeared out of nowhere. Betelgeuse will be the first star we as a species will watch go supernova.
Do I take it your 'death of a star' criterion here excludes Type I SN? Or is this category restricted to stars originally having been long visible to the unaided eye?
I forget what type SN 1987a was, but it was an easy naked eye event in our companion galaxy, the Large Magellanic Cloud. I was fortunate to see it--at peak brightness no less--due to having already booked on a trip to Australia with a group of astrophotography before the star popped off.
I am referring specificaly a star previously visible to our eyes going supernova.
Going to make Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy even harder to explain to the younguns. Dad, what's a Ford Prefect and what's a Betelgeuse?
Crazy thing is, it may have already died, but that light hasn't reached us yet. We could be looking at a ghost.
On this week's episode, we find PNick repeatedly answering the same frustrating question about witnessed supernovae until his head goes supernova. Tune in next week for a glimpse at the PNick nebula.
Don't fret, Nick. At least all of the comments with the same already answered question are good for the algorithm.
It is cruel to wish for it, but a lot of astronomy freaks, want to witness this supernova. Even if it means losing a lifelong friend. Curiosity has no remorse or regrets.
Boom-Geuse!
Hopefully there aren't any sentient beings within the blast zone
That stars had to die so we might exist and witness such an event, should at least be humbling to a species new to it's already ancient world.
imagine the generational divide... from astro nerds to general population who occasionally look up at the stars - being born and growing up knowing that the night sky looked different for you patents and teachers 🤔
what an interesting effect!
We kinda already have that. Anyone born after 1992 has grown up in a universe with actual, real exoplanets in it. When I was a kid they were just in science fiction books.
Funny. Commented on Universe Today that I was probably one of the few rooting for Betelgeuse to hold on. Though I think that when it comes to giants, things like measuring their diameter, or talking about extended atmosphere... all becomes rather nebulous. I'd like to see someone produce a graph of material density against the distance away from the core of the star.
Micronova. Our sun is capable of them, as well.
Hm. According to Wikipedia, micronovae can only form on white dwarfs.
….I vote we get to see the show.
Everything in the universe is transient. I am at peace with the sky father
When will the f________ thing blow up!!!!!????? I've been hearing about it for years!!!!!! I want to see it!!!!!
I find it annoying that after I watch one video about Betelgeuse, RUclips keeps recommending me more and more videos about Betelgeuse.
Well, Betelgeuse is out of view currently and won't be viewable until late July in the early morning hours. It is too close to our Sun in the sky to view.
so you're saying, if we want to see it explode, we need to do a... time warp again?
the more we think we know,
the less we seem to understand.
(I'll see if I can get in touch with the Universe Masters.
I may have misplaced their number though.
I wonder if their gmail account is still active)
Can't wait to play Neutron Dance.
Did someone steal your brand new Chevrolet?
Our species H. sapiens only has some 200,000 years of existance per the archaeological and paleontological record: the firs known modern human was Omo 1. Irhoud humans from 300,000 years ago in Morocco are not our species, even if surely closely related, they lack our traits such as globular head or a chin (which are related traits, as you need a chin to get rid of excessive muscles in the face that limit our pathway to brain expansion). Don't go for the hype: nothing has changed since old good Richard Leakey discovered Omo 1: we have a better understanding of the wider context (if we bother using our brains instead of bandwagoning the media hype) but that's about it.
Hell yeah I want to see Betelgeuse explode, it will explode sooner or later, I hope it’s in my life time so I can see it
So, this stuff all happened in the year 1423?
But, in reality no one knows why.
Poetic as always
Yer the best nick.
Or some 'dust' stopped occluding. Plasma Cosmology just makes sense. It really is an Electric Universe. Don't worry, your grants are still active.
Wow. You're the first EU comment I've ever had that didn't immediately resort to insults. Keep it up.
We need to use the word frisson a lot more.
On the privileged position point I take the lottery player's approach: somebody's gotta win.
I thought there were many recorded supernovas throughout history?
Please see the pinned comment
It has to go sometime so love Orion as much as I do, I'd like to say goodbye to it.
Not looking forward to the heights of human stupidity that will be displayed though.
Imagine a world like ours, rich in apocalyptic phantasies of disease, nuclear war and world spanning conspiracies -- being the one facing a -once in a lifetime- _once in a species/eon/300k years (or so)_ supernova illuminating the day... Can you picture the insanity this could feed into?!?
Other than that, I count myself inwith the camp of "supernova _optimists"._
Many people love fireworks but scream inside well controlled rollercoasters. I rather enjoy the cosmic lightshow and buckle up for some -- if nothing else -- _interesting_ times...
Anyone got any popcorn?
(I won't hold my breath for it to happen, though; I'm still a pyrrhonean, after all!)
We would be so lucky and privileged to see the death of that great star.
But what if there is another star behind Betelgeuse that it was covering the whole time? It will take its place in the constelation. i want that supernova shit to happen asap.
Dont get me wrong, its a beautiful star but the void .. is so enticing. A lesson about or own mortality an entire generation will learn. At the same time.
It might trigger the paradigm change this world needs.
Would it not create an expanding nebula if it exploded?
We woudln't be able to see it without a telescope though.
The last death of a star see circa 300,000 years ago, what about the Crab Nebula? Historical records revealed that a new star bright enough to be seen in the daytime had been recorded in the same part of the sky as the Crab Nebula by Chinese astronomers on 4 July 1054.
I pinned that very question. No one saw the star that made the crab nebula prior to its explosion.
I think of the potential billions or trillions of lives that will be lost when it goes supernova.
I doubt you have to worry about that. If our sun were 46 years old instead of 4.6 billion years old, Betelgeuse would be less than a month old. Any life that managed to form on it likely still hasn't figured out the whole "cell nucleus" thing
@@parallaxnick637 You're right, but what about any solar systems within a light year or two of Betelgeuse, that could potentially get affected by the supernova?
@@phoule76 There don't appear to be any stars particularly close (Stack exchange suggests the nearest star is about 18 ly away). That said, Betelgeuse is so bright, and its precise location so uncertain that there could be closer stars that we can't see. All I can say in reassurance is that, if they were old enough to develop complex life in the first place, then they've already seen off dozens of supernovae and it's highly unlikely, given Betelgeuse's short lifespan, that they're anywhere near it now.
@@parallaxnick637 Let's hope they've moved along, yes!
Great explanation. Thank you. Always love your videos. I think those hoping for The Boom outside of relevant disciplines are having a modern day equivalent of the public executions of medieval times.
Even the most parochial of questions under academic study have disagreements. It would be boring otherwise. I see all camps on This one as adding information for consideration, and the Letter and Notes wars across journals will generate new thoughts and questions that ultimately will be of benefit. But I also am skeptical of The Black Hole Gap explanation.
I personally think the whole "we are not in a privileged position in time or space" argument has, and continues, to have a warping effect in astronomy. Whether privilege or luck is the word to use, whether factors of our planet, orbit, star, galaxy position, point in time, laws of our universe, we exist because they are just so. I am an athiest and quite comfortable with my lack of belief, and quite comfortable with others who do believe in something, so it seems to me that "we are not special" is an argument still too tied in defensive roots of religion.
We exist because everything is just so. If it wasn't, we wouldn't be here. It's not about privilege ir really being "special", it just is what it is. But for the only life we are aware of, these are the narrow parameters we need. Not many other stars look like good candidates, tidally locked planets are a bust, we happen to exist coz our little neighbourhood is quiet, the big boomy stars have all gone boom anywhere near us....
So, relax and enjoy our unremarkable remarkable boringness surrounded by tens of light years of angry red dwarfs with tidally locked planets!
Our cosmological models are spoken of with such confidence and certainty- even as they are modern creation epics, none are right and none are wrong so long as they fit observations. But it is here that the truth of the matter is revealed: we’ve come so far and know so much yet our ideas are inherently assumptions built on uncertainties extrapolated over time and space. The layman is completely unaware of the aching mysteries in modern solar physics. I won’t list them although suffice it to say to even construct a computational model of our own sun, we must cheat on the parameters. So while I don’t exactly scoff at diagrams of stellar fusion over time, I do worry when it is used as a roadmap to supernova. Thankfully, in this case, we do appear to be safe in any event. But even that has it’s uncertainties.
Side note: Betelgeuse is spectacular isn’t it? A roiling and barely contained gravitational well of mystery and awesomeness.
I wouldn't necessarily compare our cosmological models to creation myths, simply because no one ever throws out a creation myth when it's disproven. Everything else I agree with though :)
If only
QUESTION: “Is Betelgeuse About to Go Boom?”
ANSWER: Nobody knows for sure.
4:12 what is this animation? this is not the first time i've seen a star depicted as being non-spherical, but i can never find more information on the topic
It's Betelgeuse's convection cells. I'd link to the video but Youtbube doesn't allow that anymore
@@parallaxnick637thank you, I'll search it out myself
and yeah posting a comment can be annoying these days
The day we see Betelgeuse go nova it happened 650 years ago. No it is not about to go nova it went along time ago.
Well you know, the whole causality thing , light cones etc. From our perspective it hasn't happened yet.