RA 102.5997° · Dec -16.0304° · star
2 more points to reach Uncommon.
HD 49978 is a common star. It lies about 856.1 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation CMa, shines at apparent magnitude 8.16 and has spectral type B7III/IV.
Its spectrum reads B7III/IV — a blue-white B-type star, with a surface tens of thousands of degrees hot and a life measured in tens of millions of years.
Look for HD 49978 in the constellation CMa. At apparent magnitude 8.16, it is an easy target for binoculars.
Like any astronomical target, HD 49978 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.
HD 49978 scores 20 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the common tier. Another 2 points would lift it into a rarer tier.
That score comes from 4 science badges — Star, Hot blue B-type star, Giant star and Blue-white 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.