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Uncommon variable star 29 EP

GL Gl 867.1A

RA 339.8943° · Dec -12.6152° · star

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Score breakdown

· 7 badges
29 pts · Uncommon
Uncommon 34 pts → Rare
  • Sun-like G-type star +8
  • Binary star +6
  • Variable star +5
  • On the zodiac +3
  • A named variable star +3
  • Main-sequence star +2
  • Barely variable (under 0.05 mag) +2
Total score 29

5 more points to reach Rare.

Badges

  • Variable star · +5
  • Binary star · +6
  • On the zodiac · +3
  • Sun-like G-type star · +8
  • Main-sequence star · +2
  • Barely variable (under 0.05 mag) · +2
  • 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 G8/K0V — a G-type star: the very same spectral class as our own Sun.
  • 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 7.7 it is just past naked-eye reach — ordinary binoculars will pull it in, 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.

Could we get there?

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

Properties

absmag
4.889
binary
yes
bv
0.764
constellation
Aqr
dist ly
121.2475
luminosity
0.9647
mag
7.74
name
GL Gl 867.1A
spect
G8/K0V
var amplitude
0.04
var designation
NV
var max
7.717
var min
7.757

About GL Gl 867.1A

GL Gl 867.1A is an uncommon variable star. It lies about 121.2 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Aqr, shines at apparent magnitude 7.74 and has spectral type G8/K0V.

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 867.1A in the constellation Aqr. At apparent magnitude 7.74, it is an easy target for binoculars.

Like any astronomical target, GL Gl 867.1A 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 867.1A is an uncommon variable star

GL Gl 867.1A scores 29 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the uncommon tier. Another 5 points would lift it into a rarer tier.

That score comes from 7 science badges — Variable star, Binary star, On the zodiac, Sun-like G-type star, Main-sequence star, Barely variable (under 0.05 mag) 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.