red giant
Slimmed Down Red Giants Had Their Mass Stolen By a Companion Star
Millions of stars that can grow up to 620 million miles in diameter, known as 'red giants,' exist in our…
In the Far Future, Stellar Flybys Will Completely Dismantle the Solar System
Consumption and disintegration. Next time you want to be the life of the party—if you're hanging out with cool nerds…
1 in 10 Red Giants are Covered in Spots, and They Rotate Surprisingly Quickly
Sunspots are common on our Sun. These darker patches are cooler than their surroundings, and they're caused by spikes in…
Antares is a supergiant star that would fill the Solar System beyond Mars, but its atmosphere is 12 times bigger than that
Antares, the angry red eye of the constellation Taurus the bull, is a red supergiant star near the end of…
We Know We’re Made of Stardust. But Did it Come From Red Giants?
We've all heard this one: when you drink a glass of water, that water has already been through a bunch…
This Star Has Reached the End of its Life
About 10,000 light years away, in the constellation Centaurus, is a planetary nebula called NGC 5307. A planetary nebula is…
Why Doesn’t Earth Have Rings?
You'd think Saturn has all the luck, with its awesome rings. But it turns out, living on a planet with…
What Are Multiple Star Systems?
Not all stars are alone. Some come in pairs and more. And when there are multiple stars in a system,…
What is a Nova?
We’ve talked about supernovae plenty of times, but what about just regular, plain old novae? What are they, and how…
What if Earth Stopped Orbiting the Sun?
What if the Earth just stopped dead in its tracks while orbiting the Sun? It would plummet straight down of…