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Common variable star 20 EP

HD 150484

RA 250.3369° · Dec 0.5076° · star

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Score breakdown

· 5 badges
20 pts · Common
Common 22 pts → Uncommon
  • Variable star +5
  • Subgiant (leaving the main sequence) +5
  • Gently variable +4
  • Orange K-type star +3
  • A named variable star +3
Total score 20

2 more points to reach Uncommon.

Badges

  • Variable star · +5
  • Orange K-type star · +3
  • Subgiant (leaving the main sequence) · +5
  • Gently variable · +4
  • A named variable star · +3

Trivia

What it actually is

  • Spectral class. Its spectrum reads K0IV: compSB — a K-type star. Orange K dwarfs are the marathon runners of the galaxy, burning steadily for tens of billions of years.
  • Where it is in life. It is a subgiant, caught in the act of leaving the main sequence as the hydrogen in its core runs out.
  • It changes. This star does not hold still: its brightness rises and falls on a rhythm of hours, days or years, either pulsing in size or being eclipsed by a companion.

Sense of scale

  • In perspective. Far away by human standards, yet still a local address inside the Milky Way's spiral arms.

Find it in the sky

  • How to spot it. At magnitude 8.5 it is just past naked-eye reach — ordinary binoculars will pull it in, over in Ophiuchus.
  • Seen from everywhere. It sits almost on the celestial equator, so it can be seen from essentially anywhere on Earth.
  • Best time of year. It stands highest in the middle of the night around May — that's when to go looking.

Could we get there?

  • Verdict. Hopelessly far for any craft humanity can build today.

Properties

absmag
3.852
bv
0.649
constellation
Oph
dist ly
279.9622
luminosity
2.5073
mag
8.52
name
HD 150484
spect
K0IV: compSB
var amplitude
0.45
var designation
V502
var max
8.388
var min
8.838

About HD 150484

HD 150484 is a common variable star. It lies about 280 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Oph, shines at apparent magnitude 8.52 and has spectral type K0IV: compSB.

Its spectrum reads K0IV: compSB — a K-type star. Orange K dwarfs are the marathon runners of the galaxy, burning steadily for tens of billions of years.

How to see it

Look for HD 150484 in the constellation Oph. At apparent magnitude 8.52, it is an easy target for binoculars.

Like any astronomical target, HD 150484 is best seen from a dark site away from city lights, and when it is above the horizon depends on your latitude and the time of year. The visibility panel above works out tonight's viewing window for your saved location.

Why HD 150484 is a common variable star

HD 150484 scores 20 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the common tier. Another 2 points would lift it into a rarer tier.

That score comes from 5 science badges — Variable star, Orange K-type star, Subgiant (leaving the main sequence), Gently variable and A named variable star — each earned for a real, measurable property of the object. Rarity on Spacedle is never random: the more remarkable an object's astrophysics, the more badges it collects, the higher it scores, and the rarer it ranks.