Alpha Coronae Australis
Encyclopedia
Alpha Coronae Australis (α CrA, α Coronae Australis) is a star
in the constellation
Corona Australis
. It is the only star in the constellation with a proper name, Alphekka Meridiana (Alphekka South), after the brightest star in Corona Borealis
, Alphecca. It is known as 鱉六 (the Sixth Star of the River Turtle) in Chinese.
In Chinese
, , meaning River Turtle
, refers to an asterism consisting of α Coronae Australis, α Telescopii
, η1Coronae Australis, ζ Coronae Australis, δ Coronae Australis, β Coronae Australis, γ Coronae Australis, ε Coronae Australis, HD 175362, κ2 Coronae Australis and θ Coronae Australis. Consequently, α Coronae Australis itself is known as .
A2V and has apparent magnitude
+4.10. It is about 130 light years from Earth
.
The actual magnitude is 2. 32
Star
A star is a massive, luminous sphere of plasma held together by gravity. At the end of its lifetime, a star can also contain a proportion of degenerate matter. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth...
in the constellation
Constellation
In modern astronomy, a constellation is an internationally defined area of the celestial sphere. These areas are grouped around asterisms, patterns formed by prominent stars within apparent proximity to one another on Earth's night sky....
Corona Australis
Corona Australis
Corona Australis or Corona Austrina is a constellation. Its name means "southern crown", and it contrasts with Corona Borealis, the northern crown...
. It is the only star in the constellation with a proper name, Alphekka Meridiana (Alphekka South), after the brightest star in Corona Borealis
Corona Borealis
Corona Borealis is a small constellation in the northern sky. Its name is Latin for "northern crown", a name inspired by its shape; its main stars form a semicircular arc. It was one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy and remains one of the 88 modern...
, Alphecca. It is known as 鱉六 (the Sixth Star of the River Turtle) in Chinese.
In Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
, , meaning River Turtle
Dipper (Chinese constellation)
The Dipper mansion is one of the Twenty-eight mansions of the Chinese constellations. It is one of the northern mansions of the Black Tortoise.-Asterisms:-Stars:* ζ Sgr* τ Sgr* σ Sgr* φ Sgr* λ Sgr* μ Sgr...
, refers to an asterism consisting of α Coronae Australis, α Telescopii
Alpha Telescopii
Alpha Telescopii is the brightest star in the constellation Telescopium.Alpha Telescopii is a blue-white B-type subgiant with an apparent magnitude of +3.49. It is approximately 249 light years from Earth...
, η1Coronae Australis, ζ Coronae Australis, δ Coronae Australis, β Coronae Australis, γ Coronae Australis, ε Coronae Australis, HD 175362, κ2 Coronae Australis and θ Coronae Australis. Consequently, α Coronae Australis itself is known as .
Structure
Alpha Coronae Australis belongs to the spectral classStellar classification
In astronomy, stellar classification is a classification of stars based on their spectral characteristics. The spectral class of a star is a designated class of a star describing the ionization of its chromosphere, what atomic excitations are most prominent in the light, giving an objective measure...
A2V and has apparent magnitude
Apparent magnitude
The apparent magnitude of a celestial body is a measure of its brightness as seen by an observer on Earth, adjusted to the value it would have in the absence of the atmosphere...
+4.10. It is about 130 light years from Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
.
The actual magnitude is 2. 32