RA 310.2782° · Dec -61.5923° · star
3 more points to reach Uncommon.
HD 196517 is a common variable star. It lies about 426.3 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Pav, shines at apparent magnitude 8.46 and has spectral type A6V.
Its spectrum reads A6V — 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 196517 in the constellation Pav. At apparent magnitude 8.46, it is an easy target for binoculars.
Like any astronomical target, HD 196517 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 196517 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.