Meanwhile, in Orion's shoulder…
New images reveal Betelgeuse’s buddy star
Betelgeuse has a companion, and someone has finally photographed it. Astronomers suspected a second star for roughly a century from the red supergiant's odd brightness rhythms, but the glare of the supergiant itself buried the evidence. The pair now has a portrait — of a system that will end as a supernova.
Why this made the cut
- a century-old suspicion confirmed by direct image
- hidden companion to the sky's most watched star