Unraveling the Enigma: Shedding Light on Betelgeuse's Mysterious Dimming

New high-resolution images of the red supergiant star Betelgeuse taken by astronomers from France's Université Côte d'Azur using the MATISSE instrument on the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope Interferometer suggest that the star's dimming event was caused by a burst of dust, specifically silicon monoxide, coming from the star. The images show that while the star as a whole appeared to darken, its photosphere actually brightened during the event, supporting the theory that a sudden cooling of the star's surface led to the formation of a cold spot and the ejection of a dust cloud. This finding also aligns with a 2021 study that proposed Betelgeuse released a bubble of gas due to a drop in temperature. The study highlights the ongoing mysteries surrounding supergiant stars and the uncertainties surrounding the behavior of stars on the verge of going supernova.