RA 45.5699° · Dec 4.0897° · star
5 more points to reach Epic.
Menkar is a rare variable star. It lies about 249.2 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Cet, shines at apparent magnitude 2.54 and has spectral type M2III.
Its spectrum reads M2III — an M-type red star — and M stars are the silent majority: roughly three of every four stars in the galaxy are one.
Look for Menkar in the constellation Cet. At apparent magnitude 2.54, it can be glimpsed with the unaided eye under dark skies.
Like any astronomical target, Menkar 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.
Menkar scores 45 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the rare tier. Another 5 points would lift it into a rarer tier.
That score comes from 8 science badges — Variable star, Naked-eye visible, Has a proper name, Cool red M-type star, Giant star, Deep red 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.