RA 108.1895° · Dec -15.5018° · star
3 more points to reach Rare.
HD 55538 is an uncommon variable star. It lies about 2,764 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation CMa, shines at apparent magnitude 7.85 and has spectral type B2Vn(e).
Its spectrum reads B2Vn(e) — 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 55538 in the constellation CMa. At apparent magnitude 7.85, it is an easy target for binoculars.
Like any astronomical target, HD 55538 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 55538 scores 31 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the uncommon tier. Another 3 points would lift it into a rarer tier.
That score comes from 7 science badges — Variable star, Distant (over 1,000 light-years), Hot blue B-type star, Main-sequence star, Blue-white 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.