RA 270.7679° · Dec -52.7224° · star
4 more points to reach Uncommon.
HIP 88402 is a common variable star. It lies about 262.4 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Ara and shines at apparent magnitude 12.17.
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.
Look for HIP 88402 in the constellation Ara. At apparent magnitude 12.17, it takes a larger telescope or a long-exposure image to capture.
Like any astronomical target, HIP 88402 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.
HIP 88402 scores 18 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the common tier. Another 4 points would lift it into a rarer tier.
That score comes from 3 science badges — Variable star, Strongly 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.