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Uncommon variable star 29 EP

GL Gl 208

RA 84.1291° · Dec 11.3279° · star

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Score breakdown

· 6 badges
29 pts · Uncommon
Uncommon 34 pts → Rare
  • Deep red star +8
  • In Orion's hunting ground +6
  • Variable star +5
  • Gently variable +4
  • Orange K-type star +3
  • A named variable star +3
Total score 29

5 more points to reach Rare.

Badges

  • Variable star · +5
  • In Orion's hunting ground · +6
  • Orange K-type star · +3
  • Deep red star · +8
  • Gently variable · +4
  • A named variable star · +3

Trivia

What it actually is

  • Spectral class. Its spectrum reads K7 — a K-type star. Orange K dwarfs are the marathon runners of the galaxy, burning steadily for tens of billions of years.
  • 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 8.8 it is just past naked-eye reach — ordinary binoculars will pull it in, over in Orion.
  • 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 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. ≈ 644.2 thousand years at Voyager 1's speed (17 km/s).

Properties

absmag
8.526
bv
1.415
constellation
Ori
dist ly
36.659
luminosity
0.0339
mag
8.78
name
GL Gl 208
spect
K7
var amplitude
0.07
var designation
V2689
var max
8.754
var min
8.824

About GL Gl 208

GL Gl 208 is an uncommon variable star. It lies about 36.7 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Ori, shines at apparent magnitude 8.78 and has spectral type K7.

Its spectrum reads K7 — a K-type star. Orange K dwarfs are the marathon runners of the galaxy, burning steadily for tens of billions of years.

How to see it

Look for GL Gl 208 in the constellation Ori. At apparent magnitude 8.78, it is an easy target for binoculars.

Like any astronomical target, GL Gl 208 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 208 is an uncommon variable star

GL Gl 208 scores 29 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the uncommon tier. Another 5 points would lift it into a rarer tier.

That score comes from 6 science badges — Variable star, In Orion's hunting ground, Orange K-type star, 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.