Stellar Timebomb

Plumes of gas spew into space from the roiling surface of Betelgeuse, the bright orange shoulder of Orion, the hunter, in this artist's concept. The supergiant star, which is hundreds of times larger than the Sun and about 20 times more massive, is blowing strong winds of gas into space, surrounding itself with a hazy nebula. Betelgeuse probably is fated to explode as a supernova, most likely within the next 100,000 years or so. [ESO/L. Calçada]