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Rare variable star 42 EP

GL Gl 867A

RA 339.6898° · Dec -20.6211° · star

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Score breakdown

· 9 badges
42 pts · Rare
Rare 50 pts → Epic
  • Deep red star +8
  • Binary star +6
  • Red dwarf +6
  • Variable star +5
  • Cool red M-type star +5
  • Gently variable +4
  • On the zodiac +3
  • A named variable star +3
  • Main-sequence star +2
Total score 42

8 more points to reach Epic.

Badges

  • Variable star · +5
  • Binary star · +6
  • On the zodiac · +3
  • Cool red M-type star · +5
  • Main-sequence star · +2
  • Deep red star · +8
  • Red dwarf · +6
  • Gently variable · +4
  • A named variable star · +3

Trivia

What makes it special

  • Not one star but two. It is a binary: two stars orbiting a shared centre of mass. More than half of all the 'stars' you can see are actually multiple systems.

What it actually is

  • Spectral class. Its spectrum reads M0Vpe — an M-type red star — and M stars are the silent majority: roughly three of every four stars in the galaxy are one.
  • 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. Inside our stellar backyard: every radio broadcast humanity has ever made has already swept past it.

Find it in the sky

  • How to spot it. At magnitude 9.1 you'll want a small backyard telescope, over in Aquarius.
  • Southern sky. It rides the southern half of the sky — an easier target the further south you are.
  • Best time of year. It stands highest in the middle of the night around August — that's when to go looking.

Properties

absmag
9.364
binary
yes
bv
1.466
constellation
Aqr
dist ly
28.3589
luminosity
0.0156
mag
9.06
name
GL Gl 867A
spect
M0Vpe
var amplitude
0.09
var designation
FK
var max
9.009
var min
9.099

About GL Gl 867A

GL Gl 867A is a rare variable star. It lies about 28.4 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Aqr, shines at apparent magnitude 9.06 and has spectral type M0Vpe.

It is a binary: two stars orbiting a shared centre of mass. More than half of all the 'stars' you can see are actually multiple systems.

How to see it

Look for GL Gl 867A in the constellation Aqr. At apparent magnitude 9.06, a small backyard telescope will bring it into view.

Like any astronomical target, GL Gl 867A 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 Gl 867A is a rare variable star

GL Gl 867A scores 42 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the rare tier. Another 8 points would lift it into a rarer tier.

That score comes from 9 science badges — Variable star, Binary star, On the zodiac, Cool red M-type star, Main-sequence star, Deep red star, Red dwarf and Gently variable — 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.