Betelgeuse's Unusual Brightness Sparks Supernova Speculation.

Betelgeuse, a red supergiant star, has brightened by almost 50% over May and June 2023, leading to renewed speculation about when it will go supernova. While one group of astronomers believes the star is in its final life stage, the carbon burning phase, another group thinks it is still in the earlier helium burning stage. Betelgeuse's recent dimming was caused by a huge ejection of matter from the star, which cooled to form a dust cloud that temporarily blocked some of the star’s light from view. Astronomers agree that Betelgeuse will go supernova soon, but soon in astronomical terms could mean anytime in the next 10,000 to 100,000 years.