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Uncommon variable star 24 EP

HD 123137

RA 211.5598° · Dec -17.6885° · star

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Score breakdown

· 6 badges
24 pts · Uncommon
Uncommon 34 pts → Rare
  • Giant star +6
  • Variable star +5
  • Gently variable +4
  • On the zodiac +3
  • Orange K-type star +3
  • A named variable star +3
Total score 24

10 more points to reach Rare.

Badges

  • Variable star · +5
  • On the zodiac · +3
  • Orange K-type star · +3
  • Giant star · +6
  • Gently variable · +4
  • A named variable star · +3

Trivia

What it actually is

  • Spectral class. Its spectrum reads K0/K1III/IV — a K-type star. Orange K dwarfs are the marathon runners of the galaxy, burning steadily for tens of billions of years.
  • 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 9.3 you'll want a small backyard telescope, over in Virgo.
  • 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. ≈ 4.3 million years at Voyager 1's speed (17 km/s).

Properties

absmag
4.952
bv
0.792
constellation
Vir
dist ly
243.7638
luminosity
0.9103
mag
9.32
name
HD 123137
spect
K0/K1III/IV
var amplitude
0.33
var designation
MS
var max
9.2
var min
9.53

About HD 123137

HD 123137 is an uncommon variable star. It lies about 243.8 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Vir, shines at apparent magnitude 9.32 and has spectral type K0/K1III/IV.

Its spectrum reads K0/K1III/IV — 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 HD 123137 in the constellation Vir. At apparent magnitude 9.32, a small backyard telescope will bring it into view.

Like any astronomical target, HD 123137 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 123137 is an uncommon variable star

HD 123137 scores 24 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the uncommon tier. Another 10 points would lift it into a rarer tier.

That score comes from 6 science badges — Variable star, On the zodiac, Orange K-type star, Giant 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.