UY Scuti - Blog Posts

What the Webb Telescope May Reveal Observing UY Scuti, the Stellar Giant

Relative sizes of the planets in the Solar System and several stars, including UY Scuti: 1. Mercury < Mars < Venus < Earth 2. Earth < Neptune < Uranus < Saturn < Jupiter 3. Jupiter < Proxima Centauri < Sun < Sirius 4. Sirius < Pollux < Arcturus < Aldebaran 5. Aldebaran < Rigel < Antares < Betelgeuse 6. Betelgeuse < NML Cygni < VV Cephei A < VY Canis Majoris (Wittkowski et al. 2012 estimate) < UY Scuti. Credit: Wikipedia

UY Scuti is a supergiant star located in the constellation Scutum, approximately 9,500 light-years away from Earth. It holds the title of being one of the largest known stars, with a size estimated to be around 1,700 times the diameter of our Sun. Despite its immense size, UY Scuti's nature and characteristics remain largely enigmatic. The JWST's high-resolution imaging and spectroscopic capabilities offer a unique opportunity to study this stellar behemoth in unprecedented detail. Read full article here