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Common variable star 18 EP

HIP 3121

RA 9.9257° · Dec 10.6538° · star

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Score breakdown

· 5 badges
18 pts · Common
Common 22 pts → Uncommon
  • Variable star +5
  • Gently variable +4
  • On the zodiac +3
  • Orange K-type star +3
  • A named variable star +3
Total score 18

4 more points to reach Uncommon.

Badges

  • Variable star · +5
  • On the zodiac · +3
  • Orange K-type star · +3
  • Gently variable · +4
  • A named variable star · +3

Trivia

What it actually is

  • Spectral class. Its spectrum reads K5: — a K-type star. Orange K dwarfs are the marathon runners of the galaxy, burning steadily for tens of billions of years.
  • 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 10.5 you'll want a small backyard telescope, over in Pisces.
  • Northern sky. It rides the northern half of the sky — an easier target the further north you are.
  • Best time of year. It stands highest in the middle of the night around September — 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. ≈ 2.1 million years at Voyager 1's speed (17 km/s).

Properties

absmag
7.714
bv
1.143
constellation
Psc
dist ly
117.6608
luminosity
0.0715
mag
10.5
name
HIP 3121
spect
K5:
var amplitude
0.13
var designation
BK
var max
10.427
var min
10.557

About HIP 3121

HIP 3121 is a common variable star. It lies about 117.7 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Psc, shines at apparent magnitude 10.5 and has spectral type K5:.

Its spectrum reads K5: — 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 HIP 3121 in the constellation Psc. At apparent magnitude 10.5, a small backyard telescope will bring it into view.

Like any astronomical target, HIP 3121 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 HIP 3121 is a common variable star

HIP 3121 scores 18 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the common tier. Another 4 points would lift it into a rarer tier.

That score comes from 5 science badges — Variable star, On the zodiac, Orange K-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.