Rare variable star 49 EP

HD 14142

RA 34.8412° · Dec 58.9612° · star

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Score breakdown

· 7 badges

49 pts · Rare

Rare 50 pts → Epic

Supergiant +18
Deep red star +8
Distant (over 1,000 light-years) +6
Variable star +5
Cool red M-type star +5
Gently variable +4
A named variable star +3

Total score 49

1 more point to reach Epic.

Badges

Variable star · +5
Distant (over 1,000 light-years) · +6
Cool red M-type star · +5
Supergiant · +18
Deep red star · +8
Gently variable · +4
A named variable star · +3

Trivia

What it actually is

Spectral class. Its spectrum reads M2Iab:var — 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 a supergiant. Drop it where the Sun is and its surface would engulf the inner planets.
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 8.3 it is just past naked-eye reach — ordinary binoculars will pull it in, over in Perseus.
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. Impossible with our current technology — and the next millennium of it.

Properties

absmag: 0.012
bv: 2.287
constellation: Per
dist ly: 1517.0047
luminosity: 86.139
mag: 8.35
name: HD 14142
spect: M2Iab:var
var amplitude: 0.29
var designation: T
var max: 8.188
var min: 8.478

Nearby objects

About HD 14142

HD 14142 is a rare variable star. It lies about 1,517 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Per, shines at apparent magnitude 8.35 and has spectral type M2Iab:var.

Its spectrum reads M2Iab:var — 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 HD 14142 in the constellation Per. At apparent magnitude 8.35, it is an easy target for binoculars.

Like any astronomical target, HD 14142 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 HD 14142 is a rare variable star

HD 14142 scores 49 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the rare tier. Another 1 point would lift it into a rarer tier.

That score comes from 7 science badges — Variable star, Distant (over 1,000 light-years), Cool red M-type star, Supergiant, Deep red 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.