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Trash star 6 EP

GL GJ 4142

RA 304.2309° · Dec 6.9217° · star

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Score breakdown

· 2 badges
6 pts · Trash
Trash 15 pts → Common
  • Star +3
  • Orange K-type star +3
Total score 6

9 more points to reach Common.

Badges

  • Star · +3
  • Orange K-type star · +3

Trivia

What it actually is

  • Spectral class. Its spectrum reads K4 — a K-type star. Orange K dwarfs are the marathon runners of the galaxy, burning steadily for tens of billions of years.

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 9.7 you'll want a small backyard telescope, 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.

Getting there

  • Aboard Voyager 1. ≈ 2.6 million years at Voyager 1's speed (17 km/s).
  • Fastest probe ever. ≈ 232.5 thousand years even at the Parker Solar Probe's 192 km/s.

Properties

absmag
6.422
bv
1.14
constellation
Aql
dist ly
148.9297
luminosity
0.2351
mag
9.72
name
GL GJ 4142
spect
K4

About GL GJ 4142

GL GJ 4142 is a trash star. It lies about 148.9 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Aql, shines at apparent magnitude 9.72 and has spectral type K4.

Its spectrum reads K4 — 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 GL GJ 4142 in the constellation Aql. At apparent magnitude 9.72, a small backyard telescope will bring it into view.

Like any astronomical target, GL GJ 4142 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 GL GJ 4142 is a trash star

GL GJ 4142 scores 6 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the trash tier. Another 9 points would lift it into a rarer tier.

That score comes from 2 science badges — Star and Orange K-type 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.