Sometimes astronomical numbers are so immense that they’re simply, well, astronomical.
Consider a star known as Pi Puppis. It’s classified as a red supergiant. It’s more than a dozen times as massive as the Sun, but it’s a good bit cooler, so its surface glows orange. The star’s already entering the last stages of life, and fairly soon, it may explode as a supernova.
If it took the Sun’s place in our own solar system, it would extend almost all the way out to the orbit of Mars.
Since stars are big balls, not disks, Pi Puppis would extend far above the plane of the solar system, too.
But remember that Pi Puppis is only around a dozen times more massive than the Sun. When you compare the size and mass, you realize that Pi Puppis is just a puffed-up gasbag. Its outer layers are so thin that they’re hardly more than a vacuum. With the right kind of shielding, you might be able to fly a spaceship fairly deep into the star and come back out again -- a journey through an astronomical giant.
clipped from: stardate.org