red giant
What Happens to Solar Systems When Stars Become White Dwarfs?
In a couple billion years, our Sun will be unrecognizable. It will swell up and become a red giant, then…
Red Giants Offer a New Way to Measure Distance in the Universe
For nearly three decades now, it's been clear that the expansion of the Universe is speeding up. Some unknown quantity,…
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,…