RA 280.8457° · Dec -52.8623° · star
3 more points to reach Uncommon.
HD 172494 is a common variable star. It lies about 400.2 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Tel, shines at apparent magnitude 8.09 and has spectral type A2V.
Its spectrum reads A2V — an A-type star: white-hot, typically about twice the Sun's mass, and the class most of the sky's famous bright stars belong to.
Look for HD 172494 in the constellation Tel. At apparent magnitude 8.09, it is an easy target for binoculars.
Like any astronomical target, HD 172494 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.
HD 172494 scores 19 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the common tier. Another 3 points would lift it into a rarer tier.
That score comes from 5 science badges — Variable star, White A-type star, Main-sequence star, 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.