• Question: do you know what star is going to explode and die next

    Asked by 08bowmanl to Charlie, Eoin, Jemma, Julian, Steve on 21 Mar 2011.
    • Photo: Eoin Lettice

      Eoin Lettice answered on 21 Mar 2011:

      Hi 08bowmanl,
      No I don’t. there are millions of stars in the universe and many are dying as we speak!

      Eoim

    • Photo: Stephen Moss

      Stephen Moss answered on 21 Mar 2011:

      Hi Bowman
      I think Brian Cox was suggesting on Wonders of the Universe, that there are so many trillions and trillions of stars that somewhere in the universe there is probably one exploding at least every few days. But I’m sure Charlie could give you a more accurate answer.

    • Photo: Charlie Ryan

      Charlie Ryan answered on 21 Mar 2011:

      hi 08bowmal!
      Well the next supernova explosion is not possible to predict – this would make astronomers life really easy!! Good candidates though are really large red supergiant stars, which are due to explode as their next stage. One star like this is betelgeuse – this is the star in the orion constellation that forms orion right shoulder (go straight up from the left of orions belt). IT should be easy to spot!!
      Betelgeuse seems to be unstable – and astrophysicists reckon that it should explode sometime in the next million years. So you could have a long time to wait, or it could happen tomorrow! Although if it did happen tomorrow the light of the explosion would take about 600 years to get to earth. So if you are going to see the explosion tomorrow, it must of happened around six hundred years ago!!!!

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