Beta Carinae
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Observation data Equinox J2000 |
|
|---|---|
| Constellation | Carina |
| Right ascension | 09h 13m 12.0s |
| Declination | -69° 43' 02" |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 1.67 |
| Characteristics | |
| Spectral type | A2 IV |
| U-B color index | 0.03 |
| B-V color index | 0.00 |
| Variable type | None |
| Astrometry | |
| Radial velocity (Rv) | -5.2 km/s |
| Proper motion (μ) | RA: -157.66 mas/yr Dec.: 108.91 mas/yr |
| Parallax (π) | 29.34 ± 0.47 mas |
| Distance | 111 ± 2 ly (34.1 ± 0.5 pc) |
| Absolute magnitude (MV) | -1.00 |
| Details | |
| Mass | 3 M☉ |
| Radius | 5.7 R☉ |
| Luminosity | 210 L☉ |
| Temperature | 9,100 K |
| Metallicity | ? |
| Rotation | 2.1 days |
| Age | 3.5 × 108 years |
| Other designations | |
Beta Carinae (β Car / β Carinae) is the second brightest star in the constellation Carina and one of the brightest stars in the nighttime sky, with apparent magnitude 1.68. It is the brightest star in the south polar asterism known as the Diamond Cross, marking the southwestern end of the asterism. Beta Carinae also has the traditional name Miaplacidus, meaning "placid waters".
Beta Carinae's traditional name Miaplacidus made its debut on star maps in 1856 when the star atlas Geography of the Heavens, composed by Elijah Hinsdale Burritt, was published. The meaning and lingusitic origin of the name remained an enigma for many decades, until William Higgins, a great scholar and expert on star names, surmised that the name Miaplacidus is apparently a bilingual combination of Arabic مياه miyāh for "waters" and Latin placidus for "placid".
[edit] References
- HD 80007 -- High proper-motion Star. SIMBAD Astronomical Database. Retrieved on November 5, 2005.
- Proper Naming of Southern Stars
[edit] External links
- Beta Carinae. ARICNS. Retrieved on December 9, 2005.
- MIAPLACIDUS (Beta Carinae). Portrait of Stars, &c.. Retrieved on December 9, 2005.
- Miaplacidus (Beta Carinae). Astronomy Encyclopedia. Retrieved on December 9, 2005.
