Posted on 01/20/2020 11:01:51 AM PST by Red Badger
Gravitational waves are caused by calamitous events in the Universe. Neutron stars that finally merge after circling each other for a long time can create them, and so can two black holes that collide with each other. But sometimes there's a burst of gravitational waves that doesn't have a clear cause.
One such burst was detected by LIGO/VIRGO on January 14, and it came from the same region of sky that hosts the star Betelgeuse. Yeah, Betelgeuse, aka Alpha Orionis. The star that has been exhibiting some dimming behaviour recently, and is expected to go supernova at some point in the future.
Might the two be connected?
Betelgeuse is a red supergiant star in the constellation Orion. It left the main sequence about one million years ago and has been a red supergiant for about 40,000 years. Eventually, Betelgeuse will have burned enough of its hydrogen that its core will collapse, and it will explode as a supernova.
Recently, Betelgeuse dimmed. That set off all kinds of speculation that it might be getting ready to go supernova. Astrophysicists quickly poured water on that idea. There's no exact number, but it's estimated that Betelgeuse won't go supernova for another 100,000 years. But when a star dims, there's clearly something going on.
Is this new burst of gravitational waves connected to Betelgeuse's recent dimming? To its future supernova explosion?
Astronomers understand that Betelgeuse is a variable star, and its brightness can fluctuate. Stars like Betelgeuse aren't just static entities. It's a semi-regular variable star that shows both periodic and non-periodic changes in its brightness.
The kind of gravitational waves that LIGO detected are called burst waves. It's possible that a supernova could produce them, but Betelgeuse hasn't gone supernova and won't for a long time.
Some think that the detection of gravitational waves in Betelgeuse's direction is unrelated to the star itself. In fact, the detection of the burst waves may not have even been real.
Christopher Berry is an astrophysicist studying gravitational waves at Northwestern University's Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics. On Twitter he spoke up about the gravitational burst waves.
So there you have it. No supernova for now, anyway. The burst gravitational waves may just be a glitch, and Betelgeuse's dimming is well-understood and not a threat.
One day Betelgeuse will explode, and our night sky will change forever. But for us here on Earth, that supernova poses no problem.
An exploding star is an awesome event. And it produces a cataclysm of deadly radiation. X-rays, ultraviolet radiation, and even stellar material are ejected with great force. The deadliest radiation is gamma rays, and Betelgeuse likely won't even produce any of those when it blows.
But in any case, we're about 700 light years away from Betelgeuse, and that's way too much distance for us to worry.
The biggest fallout is that the Orion constellation will change forever. And there'll be a new object to study in the sky: a supernova remnant.
I never did trust the Betelgeuse. Sure, they make a fine chocolate but after the Congo thing I gave up on them.
That dimming occurred a long time ago; the light is only just now reaching our neighborhood.
It is 642 LY away, but has been fluctuating for a long time.
We do not know when it will blow!................
I’m just here for the Beetlejuice memes.
“Recently, Betelgeuse dimmed. That set off all kinds of speculation that it might be getting ready to go supernova.”
At these interstellar distances whatever may happen... already happened. We’re just waiting for the light to get here.
“it’s estimated that Betelgeuse won’t go supernova for another 100,000 years.”
Don’t tell Greta Thunberg... She’ll start a countdown more annoying that “100 Bottle of Beer on the Wall”
As I understand it; when a star starts making iron, the shows over. You’re just waiting for the fat lady to sing.
lol
Nine posts, not bad.
5.56mm
About that global warming thing cancel it wait for flash.
It's so far away we are seeing it as it was. It takes 724 years for light to travel that distance. If it went supernova 723 years and ten months ago we will see it in the sky in 2 months.
Wasn't it posited that the Star of Bethlehem was a very distant or smaller size supernova? Things that make you go...Hmmmm.
Now we know why the attack ships are on fire on the shoulder of Orion.
That is true, but Betelgeuse is HUGE!
It’s the size of the Mars orbit!.............
That is true, but Betelgeuse is HUGE!
It’s the size of the Mars orbit!.............
Since this blip seems to have happened somewhere near the direction of the super giant red star Betelgeuse and Betelgeuse has been very dim lately it's not too much of a stretch to conclude it’s something happening there. Betelgeuse is 640 lights years away. This is relatively close to Earth and minor gravity bumps could actually be detected here.
Giant stars like Betelgeuse are like an onion in the way light elements are fused into heavier ones. This is because deeper down you have more pressure and heat. Some elements which might not fuse near the surface, like carbon , will be lit up deeper down.
My theory is what we saw was Betelgeuse starting up a new layer in the core. Since the star dimmed that means it must of contracted which would heat everything up and add to the pressure in the core. That in turn would push the core past the point where a heavier element could be detonated. Perhaps it was not hot enough to make silicon from nitrogen and now it can. Such an event would spread quickly because the new fusion reaction now provides the heat to spread this new reaction throughout the core. With all this mass slashing around from this chain reaction you get that blip but the star does not explode because it’s merely shifting into a new equilibrium.
In the image above notice how it says 'last day' . That is because once the core starts making iron it's no longer generating heat. In fact it is now using up energy to make iron or any element heavier than that. Obviously you can't maintain the balance between gravity pushing down and heat pushing up if it's now gravity pushing down and cooling contracting down. That collapse is what causes the rebound shock wave which detonates the whole star into a supernova.
Since the blip was only 14 milliseconds long and the new shell chain reaction could not spread faster than light that suggests the initial volume in the core lit up was about the same volume as our moon, (around 2000 miles in diameter). Different elements would give resulting different times to the blip so it should be possible to calculate what new element is being formed in the core.
Yea, and someday, Sol will be too and Earth won’t exist anymore.
That’s what I tell the Global Warming Eco-nuts..................
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