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Uncommon variable star 23 EP

HD 37386

RA 84.8741° · Dec 29.8335° · star

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Score breakdown

· 5 badges
23 pts · Uncommon
Uncommon 34 pts → Rare
  • Sun-like G-type star +8
  • Variable star +5
  • Subgiant (leaving the main sequence) +5
  • A named variable star +3
  • Barely variable (under 0.05 mag) +2
Total score 23

11 more points to reach Rare.

Badges

  • Variable star · +5
  • Sun-like G-type star · +8
  • Subgiant (leaving the main sequence) · +5
  • Barely variable (under 0.05 mag) · +2
  • A named variable star · +3

Trivia

What it actually is

  • Spectral class. Its spectrum reads G5IVvar — a G-type star: the very same spectral class as our own Sun.
  • Where it is in life. It is a subgiant, caught in the act of leaving the main sequence as the hydrogen in its core runs out.
  • 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 8.5 it is just past naked-eye reach — ordinary binoculars will pull it in, over in Auriga.
  • 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.

Properties

absmag
1.484
bv
1.317
constellation
Aur
dist ly
840.6084
luminosity
22.2024
mag
8.54
name
HD 37386
spect
G5IVvar
var amplitude
0.04
var designation
HH
var max
8.515
var min
8.555

About HD 37386

HD 37386 is an uncommon variable star. It lies about 840.6 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Aur, shines at apparent magnitude 8.54 and has spectral type G5IVvar.

Its spectrum reads G5IVvar — a G-type star: the very same spectral class as our own Sun.

How to see it

Look for HD 37386 in the constellation Aur. At apparent magnitude 8.54, it is an easy target for binoculars.

Like any astronomical target, HD 37386 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 37386 is an uncommon variable star

HD 37386 scores 23 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the uncommon tier. Another 11 points would lift it into a rarer tier.

That score comes from 5 science badges — Variable star, Sun-like G-type star, Subgiant (leaving the main sequence), 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.