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Common star 19 EP

GL Gl 521.1

RA 205.0297° · Dec -4.1861° · star

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Score breakdown

· 5 badges
19 pts · Common
Common 22 pts → Uncommon
  • Red dwarf +6
  • Cool red M-type star +5
  • Star +3
  • On the zodiac +3
  • Main-sequence star +2
Total score 19

3 more points to reach Uncommon.

Badges

  • Star · +3
  • On the zodiac · +3
  • Cool red M-type star · +5
  • Main-sequence star · +2
  • Red dwarf · +6

Trivia

What it actually is

  • Spectral class. Its spectrum reads M0V — an M-type red star — and M stars are the silent majority: roughly three of every four stars in the galaxy are one.
  • Where it is in life. It is on the main sequence, quietly fusing hydrogen in its core exactly as the Sun does.

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 9.6 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.

Could we get there?

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

Getting there

  • Aboard Voyager 1. ≈ 848.1 thousand years at Voyager 1's speed (17 km/s).

Properties

absmag
8.759
bv
1.376
constellation
Vir
dist ly
48.2623
luminosity
0.0273
mag
9.61
name
GL Gl 521.1
spect
M0V

About GL Gl 521.1

GL Gl 521.1 is a common star. It lies about 48.3 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Vir, shines at apparent magnitude 9.61 and has spectral type M0V.

Its spectrum reads M0V — 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 521.1 in the constellation Vir. At apparent magnitude 9.61, a small backyard telescope will bring it into view.

Like any astronomical target, GL Gl 521.1 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 521.1 is a common star

GL Gl 521.1 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 5 science badges — Star, On the zodiac, Cool red M-type star, Main-sequence 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.