About HD 116802
HD 116802 is a rare variable star. It sits in the constellation Vir, shines at apparent magnitude 9.49 and has spectral type G6Ibvar.
Its spectrum reads G6Ibvar — a G-type star: the very same spectral class as our own Sun.
Rare variable star 47 EP
HD 116802
RA 201.5083° · Dec -3.3787° · star
Score breakdown
· 6 badgesRare 50 pts → Epic
- Supergiant +18
- Strongly variable +10
- Sun-like G-type star +8
- Variable star +5
- On the zodiac +3
- A named variable star +3
Total score 47
3 more points to reach Epic.
Badges
- Variable star · +5
- On the zodiac · +3
- Sun-like G-type star · +8
- Supergiant · +18
- Strongly variable · +10
- A named variable star · +3
Trivia
Hard to believe
- True brightness. It pours out about 1.4 million times as much light as the Sun. It only looks ordinary because it is so far away.
What it actually is
- Spectral class. Its spectrum reads G6Ibvar — a G-type star: the very same spectral class as our own Sun.
- Where it is in life. It is a supergiant, hundreds of times wider than the 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.
Find it in the sky
- How to spot it. At magnitude 9.5 you'll want a small backyard telescope, over in Virgo.
- Seen from everywhere. It sits almost on the celestial equator, so it can be seen from essentially anywhere on Earth.
- Best time of year. It stands highest in the middle of the night around April — that's when to go looking.
Its true colour
- Its true colour. Measured through blue and visual filters it comes out yellow-white (B−V 0.4) — a shade brighter and crisper than our own Sun.
Properties
- absmag
- -10.51
- bv
- 0.4
- constellation
- Vir
- luminosity
- 1393156.8029
- mag
- 9.49
- name
- HD 116802
- spect
- G6Ibvar
- var amplitude
- 1.18
- var designation
- W
- var max
- 9.422
- var min
- 10.602
Nearby objects
How to see it
Look for HD 116802 in the constellation Vir. At apparent magnitude 9.49, a small backyard telescope will bring it into view.
Like any astronomical target, HD 116802 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 116802 is a rare variable star
HD 116802 scores 47 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the rare tier. Another 3 points would lift it into a rarer tier.
That score comes from 6 science badges — Variable star, On the zodiac, Sun-like G-type star, Supergiant, Strongly 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.