When will betelgeuse die?

Answer 1

Betelgeuse is observed to be very unstable as of now, with large charges luminosity. It is expected to die within the next few thousand years. In fact, it might already be dead, but the light from the resulting supernova explosion could still be in transit. It takes around 640 years for that light to reach us.

Answer 2

The death of a star is an event that stretches over hundreds of thousands, if not

millions, of years. The exception is the explosion of a star, which can happen in as

little as one day.

Betelgeuse is considered to be a dying star. We know for sure that it did not explode

at any time up until roughly the year 1370, because when we look at Betelgeuse in the

sky tonight, we see it as it was in 1370, and the light that left it at that time is just

reaching us now.

It might have exploded since then, but we won't know that until we can see it.

For example, if Betelgeuse exploded in 1776, then we'll see the explosion some

time around the year 2415 or 2420.