RA 341.0313° · Dec 55.5892° · star
9 more points to reach Rare.
Babcock's star is an uncommon variable star. It sits in the constellation Lac, shines at apparent magnitude 8.83 and has spectral type A0p.
Its spectrum reads A0p — 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 Babcock's star in the constellation Lac. At apparent magnitude 8.83, it is an easy target for binoculars.
Like any astronomical target, Babcock's star 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.
Babcock's star scores 25 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the uncommon tier. Another 9 points would lift it into a rarer tier.
That score comes from 5 science badges — Variable star, Has a proper name, White A-type 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.