Since October 2019, this massive red supergiant, named Betelgeuse, has been losing its sparkle

自2019年10月以來，這顆名為 "貝特宙斯 "的巨大紅色超巨星就一直在失去它的光芒

leading many scientists to wonder whether the star is headed toward its demise

導致許多科學家懷疑這顆恆星是否正在走向滅亡。

by way of a supernova explosion.

通過超新星爆炸的方式。

And me to wonder if it will blow if we say its name three times.

而我要想知道，如果我們說三遍它的名字，它會不會吹。

Like the Tim Burton character, Betelgeuse—also pronounced Betelgeuse—

就像蒂姆-伯頓的角色一樣，貝特宙斯--也讀作 "貝特宙斯"。

is known for its erratic behavior,

以其不穩定的行為而聞名。

shrinking then expanding and dimming then flaring on a semi regular basis.

先收縮後擴張，先暗後亮，半定期。

This ruddy colored star is located at the top left of Orion's belt, the most visible part of the constellation.

這顆赤色的恆星位於獵戶座腰帶的左上方，是獵戶座最明顯的部分。

And it's huge, with a mass that's over 10 times the size of our Sun,

而且它的體積很大，品質是我們太陽的10倍以上。

and a diameter that's roughly 1,000 times larger.

而直徑大約是1000倍。

This 8-9 million year old star is also super bright,

這顆800-900萬年的恆星也是超級明亮。

frequently ranking among the top 10 brightest stars in our night sky.

頻頻躋身於夜空中最亮的10顆星。

At least, it did.

至少，它做到了。

According to recent reports, Betelgeuse has cooled by roughly 100 Kelvin since September 2019

根據最近的報道，自2019年9月以來，Betelgeuse已經冷卻了大約100開爾文。

and is now hovering around 1.6 apparent magnitude,

且目前徘徊在1.6的明顯幅度。

a significant drop from its average range of 0.4 to 1.2 magnitudes of brightness.

從其平均亮度範圍0.4至1.2級大幅下降。

This supergiant has now been demoted to about the 21st brightest star in the galaxy,

這顆超巨星現在已經被降級為銀河系中最亮的第21顆恆星左右。

which is the faintest it's been in at least a century.

這是至少一個世紀以來最微弱的一次。

So what gives?

那是什麼？

Well, one might be inclined to attribute the star's fluctuating brightness to its regular "cycles,"

也許有人會傾向於把恆星的亮度波動歸結為它的規律性 "週期"。

which occur in both short, several month-long periods and longer ones lasting about 6 years,

既有長達幾個月的短時期，也有持續6年左右的長時期。

which affects how dim or bright Betelgeuse appears.

這影響了貝特宙斯的亮度和暗度。

Could it just be that these cycles are overlapping, or maybe that clouds of debris are blocking the star's light?

難道只是因為這些週期是重疊的，或者是碎片雲擋住了恆星的光線？

Well, maybe—but other strange things are also happening to the star.

也許吧，但其他奇怪的事情也發生在明星身上。

For one, it's shedding quite a lot of mass,

其一，它的脫落品質相當大。

but instead of generating lots of heat like scientists would assume, it's staying cool.

但它並沒有像科學家假設的那樣產生大量的熱量，而是保持著涼爽。

Betelgeuse is also defying expectations with its super-speed rotation,

貝特宙斯的超高速旋轉也是不負眾望。

which has been observed to be spinning around 150 times faster than would be expected for a star this big.

觀測到它的自轉速度是這麼大的恆星的150倍。

And nothing we've observed so far can really account for this.

而我們目前所觀察到的一切，都無法真正解釋這一點。

Although there is a theory that Betelgeuse captured a star 100,000 years or so ago,

雖然有一種理論認為，貝特宙斯在10萬年左右前捕獲了一顆恆星。

in turn inheriting its angular momentum and a faster rotation.

進而繼承其角動量和較快的旋轉速度。

And to add to all this, in the early part of 2020 astronomers observed a “burst” of gravitational waves

而更重要的是，在2020年初，天文學家觀測到了引力波的 "爆發"

coming from the area near the star,

來自於恆星附近的區域。

which has really got astronomers wondering what the heck is going on.

這讓天文學家們真的很想知道這到底是怎麼回事。

One of the prevailing theories to explain all of this seemingly unexplainable behavior

其中一個主流的理論是解釋這些看似無法解釋的行為。

is that the star is about to go supernova.

就是這顆恆星即將成為超新星。

If that's the case, that means it's been triggered into runaway nuclear fusion,

如果是這樣的話，那就意味著它已經被引發了失控的核聚變。

a process which would entail the star gobbling up its remaining fuel until its depleted core collapses.

這個過程將導致恆星吞噬其剩餘的燃料，直到其耗盡的核心崩潰。

Ultimately that would lead to the brightest supernova ever observed,

最終，這將導致有史以來最亮的超新星被觀測到。

turning about as bright as the moon within just a few days

日月同輝

and casting shadows here on Earth.

並在地球上投下陰影。

Supernovae are undoubtedly some of the most defining events in our understanding of the cosmos,

超新星無疑是我們對宇宙認識中最具決定性的事件。

and because they're so few and far between, observing one is a huge deal.

因為他們是如此的少而遠， 觀察一個是一個巨大的交易。

The last supernova to be discovered in our own solar system was Kepler's Star,

最後一顆在太陽系被發現的超新星是開普勒星。

which Johannes Kepler observed way back in 1604.

約翰內斯-開普勒早在1604年就觀察到了這一點。

This sighting convinced him and others that the heavens weren't fixed

這一幕讓他和其他人相信，天並不是固定的

and it still blows our minds today, over 400 years later.

400多年後的今天，它仍然讓我們大開眼界。

Since then we've gotten better at confirming these astronomical events,

從那時起，我們就開始更好地確認這些天文事件了。

like the supernova that took place back in 1987,

如1987年發生的超新星。

when light from a star that died in a nearby constellation 50,000 years prior finally reached Earth.

當一顆在附近星座死亡的恆星發出的光在5萬年前終於到達地球時。

So if Betelgeuse is indeed headed towards its demise, then astronomically speaking,

所以，如果貝特宙斯真的走向了滅亡，那麼從天文上來說。

this explosion could be imminent,

這場爆炸可能迫在眉睫。

happening anytime within the next few thousand years or the next 100,000.

在未來幾千年或十萬年內隨時會發生。

Unfortunately not much else is known, except that more observational studies and models are definitely needed.

遺憾的是，除了肯定需要更多的觀察研究和模型外，其他的都不太清楚。

But there's one final twist to the Betelguese saga,

但貝特魯斯的傳奇還有最後一個轉折。

and it involves something that we're a little bit more certain about:

而且它涉及到的東西，我們更確定一點。

the star is expected to cross paths with a bunch of interstellar dust within the next few thousand years,

恆星有望在未來幾千年內與一堆星際塵埃相遇。

crashing into the wall at a rate of about 30 kilometers per second.

以每秒30公里左右的速度撞向牆壁。

No matter what the future holds for Betelgeuse, it seems only fitting for a star of this stature

不管貝特宙斯的未來如何，對於這樣的明星來說，似乎都是再合適不過了

to go out with a BIG bang!

轟轟烈烈地走出去!

And we're definitely here for it.

而我們絕對是為它而來。

Even if we might not be, you know, actually here for it.

即使我們可能不是，你知道的，實際上是為了它而來。

I will be dead.

我會死的。

Curious to observe Betelguese's changes yourself?

好奇自己觀察貝特魯斯的變化？

If you're in the northern hemisphere, just look up, no instruments are needed!

如果你在北半球，只需抬頭看一眼，不需要任何儀器!

Let us know what you see in the comments below,

讓我們在下面的評論中知道你看到了什麼。

and if there's another stellar discovery that you'd like to see us cover.

如果有其他的恆星發現 你想看到我們覆蓋，

Don't forget to subscribe for more Seeker.

不要忘了訂閱更多的《尋人啟事》。

As always, thanks for watching and we'll see you next time.

一如既往，感謝大家的觀看，我們下期再見。