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Uncommon star 33 EP

GL Gl 231.1A

RA 94.3172° · Dec 5.1001° · star

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Score breakdown

· 6 badges
33 pts · Uncommon
Uncommon 34 pts → Rare
  • Naked-eye visible +8
  • Sun-like G-type star +8
  • Binary star +6
  • In Orion's hunting ground +6
  • Star +3
  • Main-sequence star +2
Total score 33

1 more point to reach Rare.

Badges

  • Star · +3
  • Naked-eye visible · +8
  • Binary star · +6
  • In Orion's hunting ground · +6
  • Sun-like G-type star · +8
  • Main-sequence star · +2

Trivia

What makes it special

  • Not one star but two. It is a binary: two stars orbiting a shared centre of mass. More than half of all the 'stars' you can see are actually multiple systems.

What it actually is

  • Spectral class. Its spectrum reads G0.5Vb — a G-type star: the very same spectral class as our own Sun.
  • Where it is in life. It is on the main sequence, quietly fusing hydrogen in its core exactly as the Sun does.

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 5.7 you can see it with your own eyes from a dark site, 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.

Properties

absmag
4.278
binary
yes
bv
0.61
constellation
Ori
dist ly
62.7827
luminosity
1.6936
mag
5.7
name
GL Gl 231.1A
spect
G0.5Vb

About GL Gl 231.1A

GL Gl 231.1A is an uncommon star. It lies about 62.8 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Ori, shines at apparent magnitude 5.7 and has spectral type G0.5Vb.

It is a binary: two stars orbiting a shared centre of mass. More than half of all the 'stars' you can see are actually multiple systems.

How to see it

Look for GL Gl 231.1A in the constellation Ori. At apparent magnitude 5.7, it can be glimpsed with the unaided eye under dark skies.

Like any astronomical target, GL Gl 231.1A 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 231.1A is an uncommon star

GL Gl 231.1A scores 33 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the uncommon tier. Another 1 point would lift it into a rarer tier.

That score comes from 6 science badges — Star, Naked-eye visible, Binary star, In Orion's hunting ground, Sun-like G-type star and Main-sequence 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.