Astronomy:Rho Centauri

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Short description: Binary star system in the constellation Centaurus
Rho Centauri
Centaurus IAU.svg
Red circle.svg
Location of ρ Centauri (circled)
Observation data
Equinox J2000.0]] (ICRS)
Constellation Centaurus
Right ascension  12h 11m 39.12805s[1]
Declination −52° 22′ 06.4067″[1]
Apparent magnitude (V) +3.97[2]
Characteristics
Evolutionary stage main sequence
Spectral type B3 V[3]
U−B color index −0.650[4]
B−V color index −0.156±0.008[2]
Astrometry
Radial velocity (Rv)+15.0±4.1[5] km/s
Proper motion (μ) RA: −43.741[1] mas/yr
Dec.: −11.771[1] mas/yr
Parallax (π)11.8348 ± 0.3746[1] mas
Distance276 ± 9 ly
(84 ± 3 pc)
Absolute magnitude (MV)−1.33[2]
Details
Mass6.6±0.1[6] M
Radius3.8[7] R
Luminosity810.42[2] L
Surface gravity (log g)3.95[8] cgs
Temperature19,500[8] K
Rotational velocity (v sin i)147[9] km/s
Age23.7±1.4[6] Myr
Other designations
Rho Cen, ρ Cen, CD−51°6455, HD 105937, HIP 59449, HR 4638, SAO 239737[10]
Database references
SIMBADdata

Rho Centauri, Latinized from ρ Centauri, is a binary star[11] system in the southern constellation of Centaurus. It is visible to the naked eye as a blue-white hued point of light with a combined apparent visual magnitude of +3.97.[2] The system is located approximately 276 light years from the Sun based on parallax, and is drifting further away with a radial velocity of around +15 km/s.[5] It is a proper motion member of the Lower Centaurus–Crux sub-group in the Scorpius–Centaurus OB association, the nearest such association of co-moving massive stars to the Sun.[3]

The primary component of this system is a B-type main-sequence star with a stellar classification of B3 V.[3] It is about 24[6] million years old with a high rate of spin, showing a projected rotational velocity of 147 km/s.[9] It has 6.6[6] times the mass of the Sun and 3.8[7] times the Sun's radius. The star is radiating 810[2] times the luminosity of the Sun from its photosphere at an effective temperature of 19,500 K.[8]

The secondary companion is 1.1 magnitudes fainter than the primary, with a projected separation of 5.68 astronomical unit|AU along a position angle of 19.72°, as of 2013.[11]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Brown, A. G. A. (August 2018). "Gaia Data Release 2: Summary of the contents and survey properties". Astronomy & Astrophysics 616: A1. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201833051. Bibcode2018A&A...616A...1G.  Gaia DR2 record for this source at VizieR.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Anderson, E.; Francis, Ch. (2012), "XHIP: An extended hipparcos compilation", Astronomy Letters 38 (5): 331, doi:10.1134/S1063773712050015, Bibcode2012AstL...38..331A. 
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 de Geus, E. J. et al. (June 1989), "Physical parameters of stars in the Scorpio-Centaurus OB association", Astronomy and Astrophysics 216 (1–2): 44–61, Bibcode1989A&A...216...44D 
  4. Gutierrez-Moreno, Adelina; Moreno, Hugo (June 1968), "A photometric investigation of the Scorpio-Centaurus association", Astrophysical Journal Supplement 15: 459, doi:10.1086/190168, Bibcode1968ApJS...15..459G. 
  5. 5.0 5.1 Gontcharov, G. A. (November 2006), "Pulkovo Compilation of Radial Velocities for 35495 Hipparcos stars in a common system", Astronomy Letters 32 (11): 759–771, doi:10.1134/S1063773706110065, Bibcode2006AstL...32..759G. 
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Tetzlaff, N. et al. (January 2011), "A catalogue of young runaway Hipparcos stars within 3 kpc from the Sun", Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 410 (1): 190–200, doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2010.17434.x, Bibcode2011MNRAS.410..190T 
  7. 7.0 7.1 Pasinetti Fracassini, L. E. et al. (February 2001), "Catalogue of Apparent Diameters and Absolute Radii of Stars (CADARS) - Third edition - Comments and statistics", Astronomy and Astrophysics 367 (2): 521–524, doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20000451, Bibcode2001A&A...367..521P. 
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 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, Bibcode2006MNRAS.371..252L. 
  9. 9.0 9.1 Uesugi, Akira; Fukuda, Ichiro (1970), "Catalogue of rotational velocities of the stars", Contributions from the Institute of Astrophysics and Kwasan Observatory (University of Kyoto), Bibcode1970crvs.book.....U. 
  10. "rho Cen -- Star", SIMBAD Astronomical Database (Centre de Données astronomiques de Strasbourg), http://simbad.u-strasbg.fr/simbad/sim-id?Ident=rho+Cen, retrieved 2016-12-25. 
  11. 11.0 11.1 Rizzuto, A. C. et al. (December 2013), "Long-baseline interferometric multiplicity survey of the Sco-Cen OB association", Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 436 (2): 1694–1707, doi:10.1093/mnras/stt1690, Bibcode2013MNRAS.436.1694R.