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Uncommon star 22 EP

GL Gl 272

RA 110.8122° · Dec 46.0874° · star

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Score breakdown

· 4 badges
22 pts · Uncommon
Uncommon 34 pts → Rare
  • Deep red star +8
  • Red dwarf +6
  • Cool red M-type star +5
  • Star +3
Total score 22

12 more points to reach Rare.

Badges

  • Star · +3
  • Cool red M-type star · +5
  • Deep red star · +8
  • Red dwarf · +6

Trivia

What it actually is

  • Spectral class. Its spectrum reads M2 — an M-type red star — and M stars are the silent majority: roughly three of every four stars in the galaxy are one.

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 10.6 you'll want a small backyard telescope, over in Lynx.
  • 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 January — 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. ≈ 940.5 thousand years at Voyager 1's speed (17 km/s).
  • Fastest probe ever. ≈ 83.6 thousand years even at the Parker Solar Probe's 192 km/s.

Properties

absmag
9.485
bv
1.442
constellation
Lyn
dist ly
53.5209
luminosity
0.014
mag
10.56
name
GL Gl 272
spect
M2

About GL Gl 272

GL Gl 272 is an uncommon star. It lies about 53.5 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Lyn, shines at apparent magnitude 10.56 and has spectral type M2.

Its spectrum reads M2 — an M-type red star — and M stars are the silent majority: roughly three of every four stars in the galaxy are one.

How to see it

Look for GL Gl 272 in the constellation Lyn. At apparent magnitude 10.56, a small backyard telescope will bring it into view.

Like any astronomical target, GL Gl 272 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 272 is an uncommon star

GL Gl 272 scores 22 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the uncommon tier. Another 12 points would lift it into a rarer tier.

That score comes from 4 science badges — Star, Cool red M-type star, Deep red star and Red dwarf — 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.