"Unraveling the Mystery of Betelgeuse's Boiling and Baffling Surface"

New simulations suggest that Betelgeuse's apparent rapid rotation may be an optical illusion caused by its "boiling" surface, rather than actual spinning. The red supergiant, which is nearing the end of its life, has been observed to spin at an unusually fast speed, but researchers now propose that this may be due to massive bubbles of gas rising and falling on its surface. Computer simulations show that these motions could be misinterpreted as spinning when observed through telescopes like ALMA. Further analysis of Betelgeuse's observations may confirm this theory and could also explain the rapid spins of other red supergiants.