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AI Crucis

AI Crucis Facts

AI Crucis's Alternative Names

HIP59026 is the reference name for the star in the Hipparcos Star Catalogue.

AI Crucis has alternative name(s) :- AI Cru, AI Cru.


Location of AI Crucis


Radial Velocity and Proper Motion of AI Crucis

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 -0.25 ± 0.86 miliarcseconds/year towards the north and -7.12 ± 1.21 miliarcseconds/year east if we saw them in the horizon.


Physical Properties (Colour, Temperature) of AI Crucis

AI Crucis has a spectral type of B2IVe. This means the star is a blue subgiant star. The star has a B-V Colour Index of -0.02 which means the star's temperature has been calculated using information from Morgans @ Uni.edu at being 9,839 Kelvin.

AI Crucis Radius has been calculated as being 8.53 times bigger than the Sun.The Sun's radius is 695,800km, therefore the star's radius is an estimated 5,936,175.36.km. If you need the diameter of the star, you just need to multiple the radius by 2. However with the 2007 release of updated Hipparcos files, the radius is now calculated at being round 4.71. The figure is derived at by using the formula from SDSS and has been known to produce widely incorrect figures.

AI Crucis Apparent and Absolute Magnitudes


Distance to AI Crucis

Using the original Hipparcos data that was released in 1997, the parallax to the star was given as 0.46 which gave the calculated distance to AI Crucis as 7090.51 light years away from Earth or 2173.91 parsecs. It would take a spaceship travelling at the speed of light, 7090.51 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 0.83 which put AI Crucis at a distance of 3929.68 light years or 1204.82 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.

Using the 2007 distance, the star is roughly 248,510,232.22 Astronomical Units from the Earth/Sun give or take a few. An Astronomical Unit is the distance between Earth and the Sun. The number of A.U. is the number of times that the star is from the Earth compared to the Sun.

Variable Type of AI Crucis

The star is a eclipsing binary sys Beta Lyrae (Sheliak) 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. AI Crucis brightness ranges from a magnitude of 10.261 to a magnitude of 9.512 over its variable period. The smaller the magnitude, the brighter the star. Its variable/pulsating period lasts for 1.4 days (variability).

Source of Information


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Additional AI Crucis Facts and Figures

Visual Facts

Primary / Proper / Traditional NameAI Crucis
Alternative NamesAI Cru, HIP 59026, AI Cru
Spectral TypeB2IVe
Constellation's Main StarNo
Multiple Star SystemNo / Unknown
Star TypeSubgiant Star
GalaxyMilky Way
Absolute Magnitude -2.12 / -0.83
Visual / Apparent Magnitude9.57
Naked Eye VisibleRequires a 7x50 Binoculars - Magnitudes
Right Ascension (R.A.)12h 06m 07.70
Declination (Dec.)-61° 15` 24.8
Galactic Latitude1.14 degrees
Galactic Longitude297.51 degrees
1997 Distance from Earth0.46 Parallax (milliarcseconds)
 7090.51 Light Years
 2173.91 Parsecs
2007 Distance from Earth0.83 Parallax (milliarcseconds)
 3929.68 Light Years
 1204.82 Parsecs
 248,510,232.22 Astronomical Units
Proper Motion Dec.-0.25 ± 0.86 milliarcseconds/year
Proper Motion RA.-7.12 ± 1.21 milliarcseconds/year
B-V Index-0.02
Radial Velocity-12.00 ± 7.40 km/s

Companions (Multi-Star and Exoplanets) Facts

Exoplanet CountNone/Unaware

Variable Star Details

Variable Star ClassEclipsing binary sys
Variable Star TypeBeta Lyrae (Sheliak)
Mean Variability Period in Days1.418
Variable Magnitude Range (Brighter - Dimmer)9.512 - 10.261

Estimated Calculated Facts

Radius (x the Sun)4.71
Effective Temperature9,839 Kelvin

Sources and Links

SIMBAD SourceLink

Related Stars

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