Posted on 10/12/2023 12:01:00 PM PDT by MtnClimber
Explanation: Mu Cephei is a very large star. An M-class supergiant some 1500 times the size of the Sun, it is one of the largest stars visible to the unaided eye, and even one of the largest in the entire Galaxy. If it replaced the Sun in our fair Solar System, Mu Cephei would easily engulf Mars and Jupiter. Historically known as Herschel's Garnet Star, Mu Cephei is extremely red. Approximately 2800 light-years distant, the supergiant is seen near the edge of reddish emission nebula IC 1396 toward the royal northern constellation Cepheus in this telescopic view. Much cooler and hence redder than the Sun, this supergiant's light is further reddened by absorption and scattering due to intervening dust within the Milky Way. A well-studied variable star understood to be in a late phase of stellar evolution, Mu Cephei is a massive star too, destined to ultimately explode as a core-collapse supernova.
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Bigger than Betelgeuse?.........................
Red, red, I like red
Ain’t no substitute for red
Some like it hot
I like it red
(Well, in this case, red and hot)
Wow.
Wow, fantastic! We are going to NW New Mexico to try for some pics of the annular eclipse. Wife is the photo pro, I’m the roadie. Cloud status, iffy. The drive south through Colorado and back home is worth it anyway. She did great with the total eclipse a few years ago in Wyoming.
Both are red giants.
Mu Cephei is about 2800 light years away.
Betelgeuse is over 500 light years away, which explains why it’s so much brighter.
https://www.star-facts.com/mu-cephei/
https://www.star-facts.com/betelgeuse/
If you get a chance to see them in a telescope, please do.
Or, binoculars will do just fine. You may need a finder chart for Mu Cephei.
Betelgeuse is the only star that we can see as a disk, and not a pinpoint of light..............
“Cloud status, iffy. The drive south through Colorado and back home is worth it anyway. She did great with the total eclipse a few years ago in Wyoming.”
I am on Texas coast very close to centerline of eclipse, so don’t have to travel. Cloud status is iffy here also but I’m too old to chase clear skies. Have all the needed gear plus spare classes for neighbors and friends who are coming down for it. For the total a few years ago went to SE Nebraska and got clouded out for all but about 10 seconds of totality, still worth the trip.
Did hit every Indian casino on the way up and back.
Awesome, good luck on this one! It’s fun to chase them, we used the Total in Wyoming as a trip starter, headed on up to South Dakota for a few days, was great. Good old American road trips, can’t beat them.
Fat-shaming comes to astronomy.
Yes. I wonder if it’s going to go nova in our lifetime. It would be cool to see.
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