Fig 1: Recent brightness variations of Betelgeuse. (IMAGE)

Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe

Fig 1: Recent brightness variations of Betelgeuse.

Caption

Stellar pulsation causes the star's brightness to vary, but the large dip in brightness in early 2020 is unprecedented. A comparison of direct images of the surface of Betelgeuse between January 2019 and December 2019 show that large portions of the star faded in December 2019, which could indicate a dust cloud appearing in front of it. The images were taken by the European Southern Observatory's (ESO's) Very Large Telescope. For brightness data, see the caption of Fig 2.

Credit

ESO/M. Montargès et al.

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Credit: ESO/M. Montargès et al.

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