Common variable star 20 EP

HD 189711

RA 300.2658° · Dec 9.5142° · star

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Score breakdown

· 4 badges

20 pts · Common

Common 22 pts → Uncommon

Deep red star +8
Variable star +5
Gently variable +4
A named variable star +3

Total score 20

2 more points to reach Uncommon.

Badges

Variable star · +5
Deep red star · +8
Gently variable · +4
A named variable star · +3

Trivia

What it actually is

Spectral class. Its spectrum reads N0v — a carbon star, wrapped in so much soot that its light is filtered to a deep ruby red.
Where it is in life. It is on the main sequence, quietly fusing hydrogen in its core exactly as the Sun does.
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 Aquila.
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 July — that's when to go looking.

Could we get there?

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

Properties

absmag: 1.439
bv: 2.13
constellation: Aql
dist ly: 842.7803
luminosity: 23.142
mag: 8.5
name: HD 189711
spect: N0v
var amplitude: 0.18
var designation: V1469
var max: 8.42
var min: 8.6

Nearby objects

About HD 189711

HD 189711 is a common variable star. It lies about 842.8 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Aql, shines at apparent magnitude 8.5 and has spectral type N0v.

Its spectrum reads N0v — a carbon star, wrapped in so much soot that its light is filtered to a deep ruby red.

How to see it

Look for HD 189711 in the constellation Aql. At apparent magnitude 8.5, it is an easy target for binoculars.

Like any astronomical target, HD 189711 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 189711 is a common variable star

HD 189711 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 4 science badges — Variable star, Deep red 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.