Rare variable star 49 EP

HD 283350

RA 61.5195° · Dec 24.7321° · star

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Score breakdown

· 7 badges

49 pts · Rare

Rare 50 pts → Epic

S-type star (zirconium giant) +20
Deep red star +8
Distant (over 1,000 light-years) +6
Variable star +5
Gently variable +4
On the zodiac +3
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
On the zodiac · +3
S-type star (zirconium giant) · +20
Deep red star · +8
Gently variable · +4
A named variable star · +3

Trivia

What it actually is

Spectral class. Its spectrum reads S42v — an S-type giant, its atmosphere laced with zirconium dredged up from the fusion going on below.
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. 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 8.8 it is just past naked-eye reach — ordinary binoculars will pull it in, over in Taurus.
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 November — that's when to go looking.

Could we get there?

Verdict. Impossible with our current technology — and the next millennium of it.

Properties

absmag: -0.022
bv: 2.007
constellation: Tau
dist ly: 1853.159
luminosity: 88.8792
mag: 8.75
name: HD 283350
spect: S42v
var amplitude: 0.15
var designation: V1135
var max: 8.696
var min: 8.846

Nearby objects

About HD 283350

HD 283350 is a rare variable star. It lies about 1,853.2 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Tau, shines at apparent magnitude 8.75 and has spectral type S42v.

Its spectrum reads S42v — an S-type giant, its atmosphere laced with zirconium dredged up from the fusion going on below.

How to see it

Look for HD 283350 in the constellation Tau. At apparent magnitude 8.75, it is an easy target for binoculars.

Like any astronomical target, HD 283350 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 283350 is a rare variable star

HD 283350 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), On the zodiac, S-type star (zirconium giant), 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.