Nearby Star Ready to Explode

A star, 600 light-years away, which is relatively close in terms of space terms, is ready to explode. The star, Betelgeuse, a star in the constellation, Orion, has shrunk by 15% in the past decade and a half, leading scientists to believe that the star is gearing up to explode into a supernova. Betelgeuse is a red giant, which typically have very short (a few million years max.) and very violent life-span. A red giant dies out as a result of the star burning up all of its hydrogen fuel, resorting to helium and other elements to power the huge stars.