Abstract:
There are billions of stars in the universe and most of them are low- or intermediate-mass ones like our Sun. Such a star lose its envelope in its last stages of evolution, which becomes a beautiful planetary nebula, while the core evolves to a white dwarf. A massive star, on the other hand, may die by explosion, producing a vast amount of energy and leaving a neutron star or a black hole. Betelgeuse is a massive star and recent observations indicate that it may explode in the near future. However, the chances for it to explode in 2012 are negligible, so there will not be "two suns" and we will not be in any danger.