Hubble picture of Betelgeuse Betelgeuse, also called α Orionis, is a red supergiant star in the constellation of Orion. It is the 10th brightest star in the sky, and is a vertex of the Winter Triangle. Its proximity to Earth combined with its enormous size make it (aside from the Sun) the largest star as viewed from Earth, and the only star that current telescopes can resolve to a visible disk. (See photo.)
Even though it is the α star of Orion, it is not the brightest. Rigel, also known as β Orionis, is actually brighter.
Origin of the name "Betelgeuse"
The name is a corruption of the Arabic Yad al-Jauza`, translated as the "hand of the central one". Jauza`, the central one, initially referred to Gemini among the Arabs, but at some point they decided to also refer to Orion by that name. During the Middle Ages the first character of the name was misread when transliterating into Latin, and Yad al-Jauza` became Bedalgeuze. Then, during the Renaissance, someone tried to derive the original Arabic from this corrupted name, and decided that it was originally written as Bait al-Jauza`. This imaginative person then declared that Bait meant "armpit" in Arabic, to the surprise of Arabs everywhere. The nameless Renaissance linguist then "corrected" the transliterated spelling to Betelgeuse, and the modern rendering was born.
In order for Betelgeuse to really mean "armpit of the central one", the original rendering would have to have been Ibt al-Jauza`.
Because of its rich reddish color the star has frequently been referred to as the "martial one," and in astrology portends military or civic honors. Other names are: - Al Dhira (the Arm),
- Al Mankib (the Shoulder)
- Al Yad al Yamma (the Right Hand)
- Ardra (Hindi),
- Bahu (Sanskrit),
- Bed Elgueze
- Beit Algueze
- Besn (Persian) (the Arm),
- Beteigeuze
- Beteiguex
- Betelgeuze(Bet El-geuze),
- Betelgeza (Slovene),
- Betelguex
- Gula (Euphratean),
- Ied Algeuze (Orion's Hand),
- Klaria (Coptic) (an Armlet)
- Yedelgeuse
Distinguishing characteristics Betelgeuse is of great interest astronomically. It is one of the first stars to have its diameter measured with a stellar interferometer; the diameter was found to be variable, ranging from 290,000,000 km to 480,000,000 km. At maximum diameter, the star would extend out beyond the orbit of Mars if put in the Sun's place. Though only 15 times as massive as the Sun, it is as much as 40 million times larger in volume, like a beach ball compared to Texas Stadium. Astronomers confidently predict that Betelgeuse will ultimately undergo a type II supernova explosion. Opinions are divided as to the likely timescale for this event. Some regard the star's current variability as suggesting that it is already in the carbon burning phase of its life cycle, and will therefore undergo a supernova explosion at some time in the next thousand years or so. Skeptics dispute this contention and regard the star as being likely to survive much longer. There is a consensus that such a supernova would be a spectacular astronomical event, but would not represent any significant threat to life on Earth given the star's enormous distance.
References in fiction In science fiction, Ford Prefect, a character in the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, hails from a world "in the vicinity of Betelgeuse".
Betelgeuse is also the name of the main character of the 1988 comedy/fantasy film Beetlejuice.
|
Feeds |
Contact