{"id":650074,"date":"2026-08-22T03:01:21","date_gmt":"2026-08-22T03:01:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/650074\/"},"modified":"2026-08-22T03:01:21","modified_gmt":"2026-08-22T03:01:21","slug":"i-jumped-from-my-chair-astronomers-discover-a-hidden-star-orbiting-betelgeuse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/650074\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cI Jumped From My Chair\u201d \u2013 Astronomers Discover a Hidden Star Orbiting Betelgeuse"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Wide-Field<\/a>This image shows the location of the red supergiant star Betelgeuse in the constellation of Orion (the Hunter). Betelgeuse can be seen quite easily without the need for a telescope as the right shoulder of Orion, as highlighted in this diagram. Credit: ESO\/N. Risinger (skysurvey.org)<\/p>\n

Direct imaging has revealed strong evidence that Betelgeuse is orbited by a companion two to three times as massive as the Sun.<\/strong><\/p>\n

For generations, Betelgeuse has appeared to the naked eye as a single reddish point in the constellation Orion. Now astronomers have obtained their strongest evidence yet that the famous star has company.<\/p>\n

Using the European Southern Observatory\u2019s<\/a> Very Large Telescope (ESO\u2019s VLT)<\/a>, a team led by French astronomer Miguel Montarg\u00e8s captured the clearest image so far of what is likely Betelgeuse B, a star orbiting the red supergiant. \u201cThis is the conclusion of a century-long quest,\u201d says Montarg\u00e8s.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have shown that Betelgeuse is not single, it is accompanied by a faint stellar companion,\u201d says Montarg\u00e8s, astronomer at the Observatoire de Paris \u2013 PSL, France, and lead author of the study published today in Astronomy & Astrophysics.<\/p>\n

Betelgeuse has been watched for thousands of years and is well known for its changing brightness. Even so, the nearby and easily visible star continues to challenge astronomers.<\/p>\n

\"VLT<\/a>This image, taken with ESO\u2019s Very Large Telescope (VLT), shows the clearest image ever of what likely is Betelgeuse B, a star orbiting Betelgeuse. The image was taken with the SPHERE instrument in December 2024, when the companion was predicted to be furthest apart from Betelgeuse as seen from Earth. The circle indicates the size of Betelgeuse, which has been removed. The bright source to the left, marked with a crosshair, is consistent with being Betelgeuse B. Credit: ESO\/M. Montarg\u00e8s et al.A century-long search pays off<\/p>\n

\u201cI jumped from my chair when I saw the processed images,\u201d recalls Montarg\u00e8s.<\/p>\n

The possibility that Betelgeuse had a companion was proposed about a century ago as an explanation for some of the star\u2019s brightness variations. Numerous searches followed, but none produced a convincing detection.<\/p>\n

Two<\/a> studies<\/a> published in 2024 predicted that the companion would reach its greatest visible separation from Betelgeuse in December of that year, making it easier to distinguish from the much brighter star.<\/p>\n

Montarg\u00e8s and his colleagues observed Betelgeuse with ESO\u2019s VLT during that window in December 2024. They then spent several months carefully processing the observations to search for the faint object.<\/p>\n

\u201cHonestly, I thought we did not have the sensitivity to detect Betelgeuse B as it was predicted,\u201d explains Montarg\u00e8s. \u201cBecause it is more massive than predicted, we see it!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Betelgeuse<\/a>This image is a color composite made from exposures from the Digitized Sky Survey 2 (DSS2). It shows the area around the red supergiant star Betelgeuse. Credit: ESO\/Digitized Sky Survey 2. Acknowledgment: Davide De Martin<\/p>\n

Earlier estimates suggested that the companion might have roughly the same mass as the Sun. The new observations instead indicate that Betelgeuse B is approximately two to three times as massive as the Sun.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe fact that we can still discover a nearby companion, more massive and brighter than the Sun, around such a well-studied star is remarkable,\u201d says Montarg\u00e8s. \u201cThese are among the best moments in science: seeing something new, unexpected.\u201d<\/p>\n

Direct imaging leaves little doubt<\/p>\n

The researchers detected light coming directly from Betelgeuse B with the SPHERE<\/a> instrument on ESO\u2019s VLT<\/a> in Chile\u2019s Atacama Desert.<\/p>\n

Previous observations had provided evidence that the companion existed, including a possible direct detection<\/a> with the Gemini North Telescope in Hawai\u02bbi, USA. The latest result, however, represents the clearest image and strongest evidence yet for Betelgeuse B.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is remarkable to see how SPHERE and advanced post-processing techniques, originally developed to find exoplanets, also excel at detecting a companion around a massive, evolved star like Betelgeuse,\u201d says co-author Anthony Boccaletti, also an astronomer at the Observatoire de Paris.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>This chart shows the location of the very bright red supergiant star Betelgeuse (Alpha Orionis) in the famous constellation of Orion (The Hunter). This map shows most of the stars visible to the unaided eye under good conditions, and the star itself is marked with a red circle. Credit: ESO, IAU and Sky & Telescope<\/p>\n

The researchers still need to watch the object continue along its expected orbit before calling the discovery fully confirmed.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo be certain that the companion is really there, we still need to observe it in one year on the other side of the star, but there is very little space left for doubt,\u201d adds Montarg\u00e8s.<\/p>\n

A companion may reshape Betelgeuse\u2019s future<\/p>\n

Betelgeuse attracted widespread attention several years ago when it became noticeably dimmer. Because the aging supergiant is expected to eventually explode as a supernova, the sudden change led to speculation that its death might be approaching.<\/p>\n

Montarg\u00e8s and other astronomers examined the dimming with ESO\u2019s VLT<\/a> and found a less dramatic explanation. A cloud of dust had temporarily obscured part of the star.<\/p>\n

The likely discovery of Betelgeuse B now raises a different question. Astronomers will investigate whether the companion could influence the evolution of Betelgeuse or affect the supernova explosion expected at the end of its life.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe question is truly opened whether this companion is going to have an impact on the evolution of the red supergiant,\u201d concludes Montarg\u00e8s.<\/p>\n

References:<\/p>\n

\u201cVLT\/SPHERE images of the candidate companion of Betelgeuse\u201d by M. Montarg\u00e8s, A. Boccaletti, O. Flasseur, A. de Koter, J. Milli, P. Kervella, S. Ridgway, E. Bordier, E. Lagadec, A. K. Dupree, F. Backs, T. Calderwood and P. Morgan, 28 July 2026, Astronomy & Astrophysics.
DOI: 10.1051\/0004-6361\/202661023<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cA Buddy for Betelgeuse: Binarity as the Origin of the Long Secondary Period in \u03b1 Orionis\u201d by Jared A. Goldberg, Meridith Joyce and L\u00e1szl\u00f3 Moln\u00e1r, 29 November 2024, The Astrophysical Journal.
DOI: 10.3847\/1538-4357\/ad87f4<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cRadial Velocity and Astrometric Evidence for a Close Companion to Betelgeuse\u201d by Morgan MacLeod, Sarah Blunt, Robert J. De Rosa, Andrea K. Dupree, Thomas Granzer, Graham M. Harper, Caroline D. Huang, Emily M. Leiner, Abraham Loeb, Eric L. Nielsen, Klaus G. Strassmeier, Jason J. Wang and Michael Weber, 24 December 2024, The Astrophysical Journal.
DOI: 10.3847\/1538-4357\/ad93c8<\/a><\/p>\n

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Follow us on Google<\/a> and Google News<\/a>.<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This image shows the location of the red supergiant star Betelgeuse in the constellation of Orion (the Hunter).…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":650075,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[270],"tags":[582,1025,18,23296,19,17,133,451,93579,1240,23297],"class_list":["post-650074","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-space","tag-astronomy","tag-astrophysics","tag-eire","tag-european-southern-observatory","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-science","tag-space","tag-space-telescope","tag-stars","tag-very-large-telescope"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/117136936235773002","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/650074","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=650074"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/650074\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/650075"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=650074"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=650074"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=650074"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}