Common variable star 19 EP

GL GJ 1160

RA 187.8286° · Dec 55.1188° · star

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Score breakdown

· 6 badges

19 pts · Common

Common 22 pts → Uncommon

Variable star +5
Never sets (northern circumpolar) +4
Orange K-type star +3
A named variable star +3
Main-sequence star +2
Barely variable (under 0.05 mag) +2

Total score 19

3 more points to reach Uncommon.

Badges

Variable star · +5
Never sets (northern circumpolar) · +4
Orange K-type star · +3
Main-sequence star · +2
Barely variable (under 0.05 mag) · +2
A named variable star · +3

Trivia

What it actually is

Spectral class. Its spectrum reads K2V — a K-type star. Orange K dwarfs are the marathon runners of the galaxy, burning steadily for tens of billions of years.
Where it is in life. It is on the main sequence, quietly fusing hydrogen in its core exactly as the Sun does.
It changes. This star does not hold still: its brightness rises and falls on a rhythm of hours, days or years, either pulsing in size or being eclipsed by a companion.

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 8.1 it is just past naked-eye reach — ordinary binoculars will pull it in, over in Ursa Major.
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 March — that's when to go looking.

Could we get there?

Verdict. Hopelessly far for any craft humanity can build today.

Properties

absmag: 6.082
bv: 0.941
constellation: UMa
dist ly: 81.8665
luminosity: 0.3215
mag: 8.08
name: GL GJ 1160
spect: K2V
var amplitude: 0.05
var designation: NO
var max: 8.054
var min: 8.104

Nearby objects

About GL GJ 1160

GL GJ 1160 is a common variable star. It lies about 81.9 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation UMa, shines at apparent magnitude 8.08 and has spectral type K2V.

Its spectrum reads K2V — a K-type star. Orange K dwarfs are the marathon runners of the galaxy, burning steadily for tens of billions of years.

How to see it

Look for GL GJ 1160 in the constellation UMa. At apparent magnitude 8.08, it is an easy target for binoculars.

Like any astronomical target, GL GJ 1160 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 GJ 1160 is a common variable star

GL GJ 1160 scores 19 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the common tier. Another 3 points would lift it into a rarer tier.

That score comes from 6 science badges — Variable star, Never sets (northern circumpolar), Orange K-type star, Main-sequence 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.