1. Amy Hoffmann Antares

2. Antares • Star in the constellation Scorpio • Greek for “Rival of Mars” or “Rival of Ares” • Antares is sometimes mistaken for Mars when they’re close because they’re both red • Mars and Antares actually conjunct every two years

4. Importance • One of the biggest stars ever known • Brightest star in the constellation Scorpio • 16th brightest star in the night sky • One of the four brightest stars in the ecliptic

5. Star Type • Red supergiant with a surface temperature of about 3500 kelvins • Like other red supergiants, it lies in a red cloud, this one measuring 5 light years in diameter • Red cloud is made of metallic dust, not gas • Member of the M1 spectral class

6. Size • 300 times the size of the sun • More than twice the diameter of Earth’s orbit • If placed in our solar system, it would cover all the inner planets and extend well into the asteroid belt

8. Distance • 604 light years away from earth

9. Brightness • Even though it’s bigger than the sun, it’s much cooler • Its size gives it its brightness; the bigger the star, the bigger amount of area it radiates light • 3000 times the sun’s luminosity

11. Where and When to View • July through August • 67 degrees south latitude • 63 degrees north latitude

12. Death • Antares is close to the end of its lifetime • The implosion of a star 15-18 times bigger than the mass of our sun will cause a huge supernova explosion • This will ultimately leave either a tiny neutron star, or a black hole • Scientists don’t have an exact death date, but, when in fact it comes, people will be able to watch this star death without being at risk

13. Video http://video.answers.com/supernova-and-death-of-a-star-516907872

14. History and Myth • In Greek mythology, Antares was known as the anti-Mars • It was considered to be Mars’ rival • Known better in ancient times as “The Heart of the Scorpion”

16. Citations • www.windows2universe.org • www.earthsky.org • www.souledout.org • www.bing.com • www.video.answers.com