Betelgeuseās Fading Mystery Deepens as Radio Data Point to a Hidden Companion
New radio observations are sharpening the long-running mystery of why Betelgeuse, the red supergiant marking Orionās shoulder, periodically dims. Astronomers now say the starās atmosphere appears to have returned to a more normal state after its dramatic āGreat Dimming,ā while evidence from ALMA and the VLA suggests a small companion star may be skimming through Betelgeuseās outer gas and disturbing its envelope. The findings do not close the case, but they strengthen the view that Betelgeuseās variability is shaped by a complex interaction between stellar pulsation, mass loss, and an as-yet-unresolved companion.
