ESO's VLT Directly Images Betelgeuse's Companion Star

Astronomers using the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) Very Large Telescope (VLT) have captured the clearest image of Betelgeuse B, the long-suspected companion star to the red supergiant Betelgeuse. Observations in December 2024 revealed the star to be larger than previously thought, with a mass two to three times that of our Sun. This direct imaging confirms decades of speculation and provides new insights into the Betelgeuse system.