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Uncommon variable star 26 EP

HD 32218

RA 75.4082° · Dec 2.9070° · star

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Score breakdown

· 5 badges
26 pts · Uncommon
Uncommon 34 pts → Rare
  • Sun-like G-type star +8
  • In Orion's hunting ground +6
  • Variable star +5
  • Gently variable +4
  • A named variable star +3
Total score 26

8 more points to reach Rare.

Badges

  • Variable star · +5
  • In Orion's hunting ground · +6
  • Sun-like G-type star · +8
  • Gently variable · +4
  • A named variable star · +3

Trivia

What it actually is

  • Spectral class. Its spectrum reads G5 — a G-type star: the very same spectral class as our own Sun.
  • 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 8.9 it is just past naked-eye reach — ordinary binoculars will pull it in, over in Orion.
  • Seen from everywhere. It sits almost on the celestial equator, so it can be seen from essentially anywhere on Earth.
  • Best time of year. It stands highest in the middle of the night around December — 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. ≈ 9.5 million years at Voyager 1's speed (17 km/s).

Properties

absmag
2.838
bv
0.791
constellation
Ori
dist ly
541.7875
luminosity
6.3797
mag
8.94
name
HD 32218
spect
G5
var amplitude
0.15
var designation
V1801
var max
8.874
var min
9.024

About HD 32218

HD 32218 is an uncommon variable star. It lies about 541.8 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Ori, shines at apparent magnitude 8.94 and has spectral type G5.

Its spectrum reads G5 — a G-type star: the very same spectral class as our own Sun.

How to see it

Look for HD 32218 in the constellation Ori. At apparent magnitude 8.94, it is an easy target for binoculars.

Like any astronomical target, HD 32218 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 32218 is an uncommon variable star

HD 32218 scores 26 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the uncommon tier. Another 8 points would lift it into a rarer tier.

That score comes from 5 science badges — Variable star, In Orion's hunting ground, Sun-like G-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.