Astronomy:Alpha Columbae
| Observation data Equinox J2000.0]] (ICRS) | |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Columba[1] |
| Right ascension | 05h 39m 38.94103s[2] |
| Declination | −34° 04′ 26.7950″[2] |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 2.645[3] |
| Characteristics | |
| Spectral type | B9Ve[4] or B7 IV[5] |
| U−B color index | −0.44[3] |
| B−V color index | −0.125[3] |
| R−I color index | −0.09[6] |
| Variable type | γ Cas?[7] |
| Astrometry | |
| Radial velocity (Rv) | +35.0[8] km/s |
| Proper motion (μ) | RA: −1.58[2][2] mas/yr Dec.: −24.82[2] mas/yr |
| Parallax (π) | 12.48 ± 0.36[2] mas |
| Distance | 261 ± 8 ly (80 ± 2 pc) |
| Absolute magnitude (MV) | −1.87[1] |
| Details | |
| Mass | 4.5[9] M☉ |
| Radius | 7±0.14[10] R☉ |
| Luminosity | 3,311[11] L☉ |
| Surface gravity (log g) | 3.5±0.04[10] cgs |
| Temperature | 12,200±122[10] K |
| Rotational velocity (v sin i) | 176[12] km/s |
| Age | 93[4] Myr |
| Other designations | |
| Database references | |
| SIMBAD | data |
Alpha Columbae is a third magnitude star in the southern constellation of Columba. It has the proper name Phact (/ˈfækt/);[14][15] Alpha Columbae is the Bayer designation, which is Latinized from α Columbae. This star has an apparent visual magnitude of 2.6,[3] making it the brightest member of Columba. Based upon parallax measurements made during the Hipparcos mission, Alpha Columbae is located at a distance of around 261 light-years (80 parsecs).[2]
Nomenclature
α Columbae, Latinized to Alpha Columbae, is the star's Bayer designation. It is abbreviated Alpha Col or α Col.
The traditional name of Phact (also rendered Phad, Phaet, Phakt)[16] derives from the Arabic فاختة fākhitah 'ring dove'. It was originally applied to the constellation Cygnus and later transferred to this star.[17][18][19][20] The etymology of its name hadāri (unknown meaning)[21] has also been suggested. In 2016, the International Astronomical Union organized a Working Group on Star Names (WGSN)[22] to catalog and standardize proper names for stars. The WGSN's first bulletin of July 2016[23] included a table of the first two batches of names approved by the WGSN; which included Phact for this star.
In Chinese, 丈人 (Zhàng Rén), meaning Grandfather, refers to an asterism consisting of α Columbae and ε Columbae.[24] Consequently, α Columbae itself is known as 丈人一 (Zhàng Rén yī, English: the First Star of Grandfather).[25] From this Chinese name, the name Chang Jin has appeared.[26]
Properties
This is believed to be a solitary star,[12][27] although it has a faint optical companion at an angular separation of 13.5 arcseconds, making it a double star.[28] The stellar classification of Alpha Columbae is B9Ve,[4] matching a B-type main-sequence star. The spectrum shows it to be a Be star surrounded by a hot gaseous disk, which is generating emission lines because of hydrogen recombination.[16] Like most if not all such stars, it is rotating rapidly with a projected rotational velocity of 176 km s−1. The azimuthal equatorial velocity may be 457 km s−1.[12] It is a suspected Gamma Cassiopeiae type (GCAS) variable star, with its apparent magnitude varying from 2.62m to 2.66m.[7]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Anderson, E.; Francis, Ch. (2012). "XHIP: An extended hipparcos compilation". Astronomy Letters 38 (5): 331. doi:10.1134/S1063773712050015. Bibcode: 2012AstL...38..331A XHIP record for this object at VizieR.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 van Leeuwen, F. (November 2007). "Validation of the new Hipparcos reduction". Astronomy and Astrophysics 474 (2): 653–664. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20078357. Bibcode: 2007A&A...474..653V.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Cousins, A. W. J. (1972). "UBV Photometry of Some Very Bright Stars". Monthly Notes of the Astronomical Society of Southern Africa 31: 69. Bibcode: 1972MNSSA..31...69C.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Levenhagen, R. S.; Leister, N. V. (2006). "Spectroscopic analysis of southern B and Be stars". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 371 (1): 252–262. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2006.10655.x. Bibcode: 2006MNRAS.371..252L.
- ↑ Houk, Nancy (1979). Michigan catalogue of two-dimensional spectral types for the HD stars. 3. Ann Arbor, Michigan: Dept. of Astronomy, University of Michigan. Bibcode: 1982mcts.book.....H.
- ↑ Hoffleit, D.; Warren, Jr., W. H.. "HR 1956 database entry". The Bright Star Catalogue (5th Revised Ed. (Preliminary Version) ed.). http://vizier.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/VizieR-S?HR%201956. Retrieved 2009-04-21. CDS ID V/50
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Samus, N. N. et al. (2017). "General Catalogue of Variable Stars". Astronomy Reports. GCVS 5.1 61 (1): 80–88. doi:10.1134/S1063772917010085. Bibcode: 2017ARep...61...80S.
- ↑ Wilson, R. E. (1953). "General Catalogue of Stellar Radial Velocities". Carnegie Institute Washington D.C. Publication (Carnegie Institute of Washington D.C.). Bibcode: 1953GCRV..C......0W.
- ↑ "Phact". STARS. http://stars.astro.illinois.edu/sow/phact.html.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Arcos, C. et al. (January 3, 2018). "Stellar parameters and H α line profile variability of Be stars in the BeSOS survey". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 474 (4): 5287–5299. doi:10.1093/mnras/stx3075. ISSN 0035-8711. Bibcode: 2018MNRAS.474.5287A.
- ↑ Balona, Luis A.; Ozuyar, Dogus (2021). "TESS Observations of be Stars: General Characteristics and the Impulsive Magnetic Rotator Model". The Astrophysical Journal 921 (1): 5. doi:10.3847/1538-4357/ac1a77. Bibcode: 2021ApJ...921....5B.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Oudmaijer, R. D. et al. (October 2008). "Sub-milliarcsecond precision spectro-astrometry of Be stars". Astronomy and Astrophysics 489 (2): 627–631. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20079117. Bibcode: 2008A&A...489..627O.
- ↑ "alf Col". SIMBAD. Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg. http://simbad.u-strasbg.fr/simbad/sim-basic?Ident=alf+Col.
- ↑ Kunitzsch, Paul; Smart, Tim (2006). A Dictionary of Modern star Names: A Short Guide to 254 Star Names and Their Derivations (2nd rev. ed.). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Sky Pub. ISBN 978-1-931559-44-7.
- ↑ Mamajek, Eric. "IAU Catalog of Star Names". University of Rochester. http://www.pas.rochester.edu/~emamajek/WGSN/IAU-CSN.txt. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Hoffleit, D.; Warren, Jr., W. H.. "Note of HR 1956 database entry". The Bright Star Catalogue (5th Revised Ed. (Preliminary Version) ed.). http://vizier.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/VizieR?-6N&-out.form=H0&//*&-source%3DV/50/notes&HR%3D1956. Retrieved 2009-04-21. CDS ID V/50
- ↑ Davis, Jr., G. A. (1971). Pronunciations, Derivations, and Meanings of a Selected List of Star Names (Reprint ed.). Cambridge, MA: Sky Publishing Corp. p. 11.
- ↑ Kunitzsch, P. (1959). Arabische Sternnamen in Europa. Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz. pp. 191–192.
- ↑ Laffitte, R. (2005). Héritages arabes: Des noms arabes pour les étoiles (2éme revue et corrigée ed.). Paris: Librairie Orientaliste Paul Geunthner / Les Cahiers de l'Orient. p. 223.
- ↑ Kunitzsch, P.; Smart, T. (2006). A Dictionary of Modern star Names: A Short Guide to 254 Star Names and Their Derivations (2nd rev. ed.). Cambridge, MA: Sky Pub. p. 30. ISBN 978-1-931559-44-7.
- ↑ Star Names: Their Lore and Meaning (Reprint ed.). New York, NY: Dover Publications Inc.. 1963. p. 167. https://archive.org/details/starnamestheirlo00alle/page/167. Retrieved 2026-05-17. ISBN 0-486-21079-0.
- ↑ "IAU Working Group on Star Names (WGSN)". International Astronomical Union. https://www.iau.org/science/scientific_bodies/working_groups/280/. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
- ↑ Mamajek, Eric. "Bulletin of the IAU Working Group on Star Names, No. 1". University of Rochester. http://www.pas.rochester.edu/~emamajek/WGSN/WGSN_bulletin1.pdf. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
- ↑ Script error: The function "in_lang" does not exist. 中國星座神話, written by 陳久金. Published by 台灣書房出版有限公司, 2005, ISBN 978-986-7332-25-7.
- ↑ Script error: The function "in_lang" does not exist. 香港太空館 - 研究資源 - 亮星中英對照表 , Hong Kong Space Museum. Accessed on line November 23, 2010.
- ↑ Allen, Richard Hinckley. "Columbae". Star Names — Their Lore and Meaning. https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Topics/astronomy/_Texts/secondary/ALLSTA/Columba_Noae*.html.
- ↑ Eggleton, P. P.; Tokovinin, A. A. (September 2008). "A catalogue of multiplicity among bright stellar systems". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 389 (2): 869–879. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2008.13596.x. Bibcode: 2008MNRAS.389..869E.
- ↑ Dommanget, J.; Nys, O. (2002). "CCDM J05396-3404 database entry". Catalogue of the Components of Double and Multiple Stars. http://vizier.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/VizieR-S?CCDM%20J05396-3404. Retrieved 2009-04-21.
