A close look at Betelgeuse

Image of the supergiant star Betelgeuse obtained with the NACO adaptive optics instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope. The use of NACO combined with a so-called “lucky imaging” technique, allowed the astronomers to obtain the sharpest ever image of Betelgeuse, even with Earth’s turbulent, image-distorting atmosphere in the way. The resolution is as fine as 37 milliarcseconds, which is roughly the size of a tennis ball on the International Space Station (ISS), as seen from the ground. The image is based on data obtained in the near-infrared, through different filters. The field of view is about half an arcsecond wide, North is up, East is left.

Credit:

ESO and P. Kervella

About the Image

Id:eso0927b
Type:Observation
Release date:29 July 2009
Related releases:eso0927
Size:1230 x 1230 px

About the Object

Name:Betelgeuse
Type:Milky Way : Star : Evolutionary Stage : Red Giant
Distance:650 light years
Category:Stars

Image Formats

Large JPEG
79.6 KB
Screensize JPEG
46.4 KB

Wallpapers

1024x768
54.0 KB
1280x1024
76.1 KB
1600x1200
104.5 KB
1920x1200
126.2 KB
2048x1536
157.8 KB

Colours & filters

BandWavelengthTelescope
Infrared
NB_1.04
1.04 μmVery Large Telescope
NACO
Infrared
NB_1.08 (He I)
1.083 μmVery Large Telescope
NACO
Infrared
NB_1.09 (P_gamma)
1.094 μmVery Large Telescope
NACO
Infrared
NB_1.24
1.237 μmVery Large Telescope
NACO
Infrared
NB_1.26 [Fe II]
1.257 μmVery Large Telescope
NACO
Infrared
NB_1.28 (P_beta)
1.282 μmVery Large Telescope
NACO
Infrared
NB_1.64 [Fe II]
1.644 μmVery Large Telescope
NACO
Infrared
NB_1.75
1.748 μmVery Large Telescope
NACO
Infrared
NB_2.12 (H2 (1-0) S(1))
2.122 μmVery Large Telescope
NACO
Infrared
NB_2.17 (Br_gamma)
2.166 μmVery Large Telescope
NACO