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11h ago

VLT Captures Clearest Image Yet of Likely Betelgeuse Companion

The detection supports a predicted six-year orbit but requires repeat imaging in about a year to prove the object is gravitationally bound and to inform models of the star’s final evolution.

A handout combination of images, obtained using the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (VLT), shows the clearest image ever of what likely is Betelgeuse B, a star orbiting Betelgeuse. The image in the middle inset was taken in January 2019 with the SPHERE instrument at the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope, and shows Betelgeuse itself. The image in the inset on the left was taken in December 2024, when the companion was predicted to be furthest apart from Betelgeuse as seen from Earth. In this inset Betelgeuse has been removed, revealing a source (marked with a crosshair) consistent with being the companion. The image was released on July 28, 2026. ESO/M. Montargès et al. Background: N. Rissinger/Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY
A handout image of the star Betelgeuse, a color composite made from exposures from the Digitized Sky Survey 2 (DSS2). The image was released on July 28, 2026. ESO/Digitized Sky Survey 2/Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY
This VLT/SPHERE image shows the clearest image ever of what likely is Betelgeuse B. Image credit: ESO / Montargès et al.

Overview

  • The Montargès-led team published results on Tuesday, July 28, 2026 showing that December 2024 VLT/SPHERE observations reveal a faint point of light next to Betelgeuse that matches the predicted location of a companion.
  • Measurements place the source about 52 milliarcseconds from Betelgeuse, a projected distance near 8.8 AU, and imply a mass of roughly 2.6 to 3.1 times the Sun, which fits earlier 5.5–6 year orbital models.
  • The image was obtained with SPHERE-ZIMPOL using a coronagraph, extreme adaptive optics and polarimetric, exoplanet-style post-processing, and the team reports months of careful data reduction were needed to isolate the faint source from the star’s glare.
  • The object shows no strong H-alpha, ultraviolet or X-ray emission, a spectral pattern consistent with an ordinary young main-sequence star rather than a protostar, but the team still calls it a candidate pending confirmation.
  • If follow-up imaging shows the source on the opposite side of Betelgeuse in about a year it will confirm orbital motion and prompt new studies of how a companion can drive brightness cycles and alter the timing or geometry of the star’s eventual supernova.