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Rare variable star 37 EP

GL Gl 82

RA 29.8473° · Dec 58.5211° · star

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Score breakdown

· 8 badges
37 pts · Rare
Rare 50 pts → Epic
  • Deep red star +8
  • Red dwarf +6
  • Variable star +5
  • Cool red M-type star +5
  • Never sets (northern circumpolar) +4
  • Gently variable +4
  • A named variable star +3
  • Main-sequence star +2
Total score 37

13 more points to reach Epic.

Badges

  • Variable star · +5
  • Never sets (northern circumpolar) · +4
  • 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 it actually is

  • Spectral class. Its spectrum reads M4Ve — 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 12.2 it is far too faint for the eye: this one belongs to cameras and long exposures, over in Cassiopeia.
  • 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 October — that's when to go looking.

Could we get there?

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

Properties

absmag
11.77
bv
1.54
constellation
Cas
dist ly
39.9456
luminosity
0.0017
mag
12.21
name
GL Gl 82
spect
M4Ve
var amplitude
0.29
var designation
V596
var max
12.058
var min
12.348

About GL Gl 82

GL Gl 82 is a rare variable star. It lies about 39.9 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Cas, shines at apparent magnitude 12.21 and has spectral type M4Ve.

Its spectrum reads M4Ve — an M-type red star — and M stars are the silent majority: roughly three of every four stars in the galaxy are one.

How to see it

Look for GL Gl 82 in the constellation Cas. At apparent magnitude 12.21, it takes a larger telescope or a long-exposure image to capture.

Like any astronomical target, GL Gl 82 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 82 is a rare variable star

GL Gl 82 scores 37 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the rare tier. Another 13 points would lift it into a rarer tier.

That score comes from 8 science badges — Variable star, Never sets (northern circumpolar), Cool red M-type star, Main-sequence star, Deep red star, Red dwarf, 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.