A red giant.
< Star
- "As it consumes the heavier elements, it begins to expand. It's basically turning into a red giant."
- ―Rodney McKay[src]
A red giant is a star that is nearing the end of its life. The star going red giant will swell in size, as it burns heavier elements after its hydrogen has depleted. Sometime after the red giant grows, it becomes critical, causing the star to go supernova. (SGA: "The Last Man")
Our sun will go red giant in around 5,000,000,000 years time. The star that M35-117 orbits will go red giant in 48,000 years time. However, in an alternate reality Lt. Colonel John Sheppard's team visited, the star had already gone red giant. (SGA: "The Daedalus Variations")