Largest known star in the universe

Harry Vest · 04-17-2008, 09:02 PM

http://www.techdo.com/images/largest-know-star.htm

Give this a few seconds...it goes on for about a minute. Pretty cool though.

melon · 04-17-2008, 09:44 PM

I've been fascinated by astronomy for a very long time. Hypergiant stars are quite an amazing feat of science.

Harry Vest · 04-17-2008, 09:52 PM

I had no idea stars were THAT big!!!

melon · 04-17-2008, 10:05 PM

I'm also fascinated by neutron stars, which can pack more matter than the entire Sun (or two or three...) into a sphere with a 20 mile radius or so.

If only the singularity of the black hole was visible, I'm sure I'd be fascinated by that too.

A_Wanderer · 04-18-2008, 05:06 AM

Doesn't have to be visible to understand it.

cobl04 · 04-18-2008, 05:37 AM

Have you read any of the ways in which people hypothesise the universe will die melon?? how do you think? It's pretty scary yet fascinatiing stuff.

A_Wanderer · 04-18-2008, 06:32 AM

I'll field that one

Infinite expansion tending to heat death, a pointless end to a pointless universe

Luckily I will have long ceased to exist so it is of little consequence to me at the moment, that view may change if that future yields benefits today.

cobl04 · 04-18-2008, 06:56 AM

I'd read about Heat Death, there's a few others however.

How do we know that heat death won't happen tomorrow however? Will it get to a point where it can expand no longer and start contract to the point where it returns to the instance before the big bang (big crunch)?

So interesting....

Do you believe in a parallel universe? and what is purgatory?

A_Wanderer · 04-18-2008, 07:06 AM

The universe is expanding, we detect that the radiation from stars in other galaxies has been stretched out during their transit through space and that stretching is proportional to distance, from that redshift (and the cosmic background microwave radiation) the big bang theory is supported. Given that the evidence points to an accelerating rate of expansion and that the ammount of matter is too little to overcome this and recollapse the universe it follows that eventually it will be spread thin, matter will break down to energy and black holes will evaporate (over massively long time scales). This state of absolute entropy is not going to happen tomorrow.

I think that parallel universes are an interesting proposition, they are introduced as one interpretation of quantum mechanics and also seem to factor into physics hypothesis such as string "theory"; I would not believe in them until a good many qualified people agree on the basis of strong evidence, at the moment it seems a consequence of some of the models and the existence is both untested and apparently untestable.

My understanding is that purgatory is some sort of state ones eternal soul must exist in without any stimulation for crimes against God until you can be let into heaven. I don't have to worry about it because I deny the holy spirit and am going straight to hell without chance of reprieve.

melon · 04-18-2008, 07:25 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by A_Wanderer
Doesn't have to be visible to understand it.

Oh I understand. I just want to see it!

DaveC · 04-18-2008, 11:02 AM

Sadly, VY Canis Majoris won't be around much longer (well, relatively, in astronomical terms), stars that big are completely unstable because they lose mass at such a high rate.

Hopefully it will explode (although it will more likely collapse into a neutron star or a black hole), now that would be cool. Hypernova

04-17-2008, 09:02 PM	#1
Harry Vest Refugee Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Winnipeg, Canada Posts: 2,455 Local Time: 09:30 PM	Largest known star in the universe http://www.techdo.com/images/largest-know-star.htm Give this a few seconds...it goes on for about a minute. Pretty cool though. __________________

04-17-2008, 09:44 PM	#2
melon ONE love, blood, life Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Ásgarðr Posts: 11,786 Local Time: 10:30 PM	I've been fascinated by astronomy for a very long time. Hypergiant stars are quite an amazing feat of science. __________________

04-18-2008, 11:02 AM	#11
DaveC Blue Crack Addict Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: turtle island Posts: 22,247 Local Time: 10:30 PM	Sadly, VY Canis Majoris won't be around much longer (well, relatively, in astronomical terms), stars that big are completely unstable because they lose mass at such a high rate. Hopefully it will explode (although it will more likely collapse into a neutron star or a black hole), now that would be cool. Hypernova __________________

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04-17-2008, 09:52 PM	#3
Harry Vest Refugee Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Winnipeg, Canada Posts: 2,455 Local Time: 09:30 PM	I had no idea stars were THAT big!!!

04-17-2008, 10:05 PM	#4
melon ONE love, blood, life Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Ásgarðr Posts: 11,786 Local Time: 10:30 PM	I'm also fascinated by neutron stars, which can pack more matter than the entire Sun (or two or three...) into a sphere with a 20 mile radius or so. If only the singularity of the black hole was visible, I'm sure I'd be fascinated by that too.

04-18-2008, 05:06 AM	#5
A_Wanderer ONE love, blood, life Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: The Wild West Posts: 12,518 Local Time: 12:30 PM	Doesn't have to be visible to understand it.

04-18-2008, 05:37 AM	#6
cobl04 45:33 Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: East Point to Shaolin Posts: 58,438 Local Time: 12:30 PM	Have you read any of the ways in which people hypothesise the universe will die melon?? how do you think? It's pretty scary yet fascinatiing stuff.

04-18-2008, 06:32 AM	#7
A_Wanderer ONE love, blood, life Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: The Wild West Posts: 12,518 Local Time: 12:30 PM	I'll field that one Infinite expansion tending to heat death, a pointless end to a pointless universe Luckily I will have long ceased to exist so it is of little consequence to me at the moment, that view may change if that future yields benefits today.

04-18-2008, 06:56 AM	#8
cobl04 45:33 Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: East Point to Shaolin Posts: 58,438 Local Time: 12:30 PM	I'd read about Heat Death, there's a few others however. How do we know that heat death won't happen tomorrow however? Will it get to a point where it can expand no longer and start contract to the point where it returns to the instance before the big bang (big crunch)? So interesting.... Do you believe in a parallel universe? and what is purgatory?

04-18-2008, 07:06 AM	#9
A_Wanderer ONE love, blood, life Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: The Wild West Posts: 12,518 Local Time: 12:30 PM	The universe is expanding, we detect that the radiation from stars in other galaxies has been stretched out during their transit through space and that stretching is proportional to distance, from that redshift (and the cosmic background microwave radiation) the big bang theory is supported. Given that the evidence points to an accelerating rate of expansion and that the ammount of matter is too little to overcome this and recollapse the universe it follows that eventually it will be spread thin, matter will break down to energy and black holes will evaporate (over massively long time scales). This state of absolute entropy is not going to happen tomorrow. I think that parallel universes are an interesting proposition, they are introduced as one interpretation of quantum mechanics and also seem to factor into physics hypothesis such as string "theory"; I would not believe in them until a good many qualified people agree on the basis of strong evidence, at the moment it seems a consequence of some of the models and the existence is both untested and apparently untestable. My understanding is that purgatory is some sort of state ones eternal soul must exist in without any stimulation for crimes against God until you can be let into heaven. I don't have to worry about it because I deny the holy spirit and am going straight to hell without chance of reprieve.