RA 128.5339° · Dec -44.5448° · star
11 more points to reach Epic.
HD 72997 is a rare variable star. It lies about 1,907.3 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Vel, shines at apparent magnitude 7.47 and has spectral type B2II/III.
Its spectrum reads B2II/III — 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 72997 in the constellation Vel. At apparent magnitude 7.47, it is an easy target for binoculars.
Like any astronomical target, HD 72997 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 72997 scores 39 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the rare tier. Another 11 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, Bright giant, Blue-white star, 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.