Universe Guide


OU Puppis - HD56022 - HIP34899

OU Puppis is a blue rotating star that can be located in the constellation of Puppis. HIP34899 is the reference name for the star in the Hipparcos Star Catalogue. The Id of the star in the Henry Draper catalogue is HD56022. The Id of the star in the Gould Star Catalogue is 72. Stars in the southern hemisphere are more likely to have a Gould Id than the northern hemisphere. For example, there are no Gould classified stars in Ursa Major. OU Puppis has alternative name(s), OU_Pup.

Location of OU Puppis

The location of the star in the galaxy is determined by the Right Ascension (R.A.) and Declination (Dec.), these are equivalent to the Longitude and Latitude on the Earth. The Right Ascension is how far expressed in time (hh:mm:ss) the star is along the celestial equator. If the R.A. is positive then its eastwards. The Declination is how far north or south the star is compared to the celestial equator and is expressed in degrees. For OU Puppis, the location is 07h 13m 13.37 and -45d10`57.1 .

Proper Motion of OU Puppis

All stars like planets orbit round a central spot, in the case of planets, its the central star such as the Sun. In the case of a star, its the galactic centre. The constellations that we see today will be different than they were 50,000 years ago or 50,000 years from now. Proper Motion details the movements of these stars and are measured in milliarcseconds. The star is moving -087.51 ± 000.12 towards the north and -025.36 ± 000.14 east if we saw them in the horizon.

Physical Properties (Colour, Temperature, Radius) of OU Puppis

OU Puppis has a spectral type of Ap. This means the star is a blue star. The star has a B-V Colour Index of 0 which means the star's temperature has been calculated using information from Morgans @ Uni.edu at being 10,293 Kelvin.

OU Puppis has been calculated as 1.74 times bigger than the Sun.The Sun's radius is 695,800km, therefore the star's radius is an estimated 1,208,628.12.km.

OU Puppis Apparent and Absolute Magnitudes

OU Puppis has an apparent magnitude of 4.87 which is how bright we see the star from Earth. Apparent Magnitude is also known as Visual Magnitude. If you used the 1997 Parallax value, you would get an absolute magnitude of 1.14 If you used the 2007 Parallax value, you would get an absolute magnitude of 1.11. Magnitude, whether it be apparent/visual or absolute magnitude is measured by a number, the smaller the number, the brighter the Star is. Our own Sun is the brightest star and therefore has the lowest of all magnitudes, -26.74. A faint star will have a high number.

Distance to OU Puppis

Using the original Hipparcos data that was released in 1997, the parallax to the star was given as 17.97 which gave the calculated distance to OU Puppis as 181.50 light years away from Earth or 55.65 parsecs. It would take a spaceship travelling at the speed of light, 181.50 years to get there. We don't have the technology or spaceship that can carry people over that distance yet.

In 2007, Hipparcos data was revised with a new parallax of 17.69 which put OU Puppis at a distance of 184.38 light years or 56.53 parsecs. It should not be taken as though the star is moving closer or further away from us. It is purely that the distance was recalculated.

Variable Type of OU Puppis

The star is a rotating Alpha2 Canum Venaticorum variable type which means that its size changes over time. The Variable Type is usually named after the first star of that type to be spotted. OU Puppis brightness ranges from a magnitude of 5.000 to a magnitude of 5.000 over its variable period. The smaller the magnitude, the brighter the star. Its variable/pulsating period lasts for 1.0 days (variability).

Source of Information

The source of the information if it has a Hip I.D. is from Simbad, the Hipparcos data library based at the University at Strasbourg, France. Hipparcos was a E.S.A. satellite operation launched in 1989 for four years. The items in red are values that I've calculated so they could well be wrong. Information regarding Stellar Age, Metallicity or Mass is from the E.U. Exoplanets. The information was obtained as of 12th Feb 2017.

OU Puppis Facts

Alternative Names

Traditional NameOU Puppis
Short NameOU Pup
Hipparcos Library I.D.34899
Gould I.D.72
Henry Draper Designation56022

Visual Facts

Star Type star
Absolute Magnitude1.14 / 1.11
Apparent Magnitude4.87
Right Ascension (R.A.)07h 13m 13.37
Declination (Dec.)-45d10`57.1
1997 Distance from Earth17.97 Parallax (milliarcseconds)
 181.50 Light Years
 55.65 Parsecs
2007 Revised Distance from Earth17.69 Parallax (milliarcseconds)
 184.38 Light Years
 56.53 Parsecs
Proper Motion Dec.-87.51 ± 0.12 milliarcseconds/year
Proper Motion RA.-25.36 ± 0.14 milliarcseconds/year
B-V Index0.00
Spectral TypeAp
Colour(A) blue

Variable Star Details

Variable Star ClassRotating
Variable Star TypeAlpha2 Canum Venaticorum
Mean Variability Period in Days1.000

Estimated Facts

Radius (x the Sun)1.74
Calculated Effective Temperature10,293 Kelvin

Sources and Links

SIMBAD SourceLink

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