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Uncommon variable star 22 EP

HD 111170

RA 191.9662° · Dec -51.4439° · star

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Score breakdown

· 5 badges
22 pts · Uncommon
Uncommon 34 pts → Rare
  • Sun-like G-type star +8
  • Variable star +5
  • Gently variable +4
  • A named variable star +3
  • Main-sequence star +2
Total score 22

12 more points to reach Rare.

Badges

  • Variable star · +5
  • Sun-like G-type star · +8
  • Main-sequence star · +2
  • Gently variable · +4
  • A named variable star · +3

Trivia

What it actually is

  • Spectral class. Its spectrum reads G8/K0V — a G-type star: the very same spectral class as our own Sun.
  • 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. Far away by human standards, yet still a local address inside the Milky Way's spiral arms.

Find it in the sky

  • How to spot it. At magnitude 9.5 you'll want a small backyard telescope, over in Centaurus.
  • Southern sky. It rides the southern half of the sky — an easier target the further south you are.
  • Best time of year. It stands highest in the middle of the night around April — 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. ≈ 7.5 million years at Voyager 1's speed (17 km/s).

Properties

absmag
3.941
bv
0.796
constellation
Cen
dist ly
425.7911
luminosity
2.3099
mag
9.52
name
HD 111170
spect
G8/K0V
var amplitude
0.14
var designation
V940
var max
9.454
var min
9.594

About HD 111170

HD 111170 is an uncommon variable star. It lies about 425.8 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Cen, shines at apparent magnitude 9.52 and has spectral type G8/K0V.

Its spectrum reads G8/K0V — a G-type star: the very same spectral class as our own Sun.

How to see it

Look for HD 111170 in the constellation Cen. At apparent magnitude 9.52, a small backyard telescope will bring it into view.

Like any astronomical target, HD 111170 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 HD 111170 is an uncommon variable star

HD 111170 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 5 science badges — Variable star, Sun-like G-type star, Main-sequence 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.