Betelgeuse is 25 percent closer than scientists thought

[Mike Wehner]

• Scientists studying the star Betelgeuse have determined that it's actually roughly 25% closer than previous estimates.
• The star is also slightly smaller than scientists assumed, though it still appears as though it's reaching the end of its life.
• The star poses no threat to Earth when it eventually blows up.

Objects in space may be closer than they appear. At least that seems to be the case with the supergiant star Betelgeuse, which has been studied at length by countless scientists. Researchers believed they knew how far away the massive star was from Earth, and the best estimate was around 642 light-years. Researchers worked with that number for a long time, but it now appears it may have been way, way off.

According to an international team of scientists led by researchers from The Australian National University and The University of Tokyo, Betelgeuse is not only around 25% closer to Earth than previously thought, but it's also considerably smaller.

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Betelgeuse is 25 percent closer than scientists thought originally appeared on BGR.com on Fri, 16 Oct 2020 at 23:13:43 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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