Nu Scorpii
Encyclopedia
Nu Scorpii is a star system
in the constellation
Scorpius
.
It is at least a quintuple star, probably a septuple, consisting of two close groups that are separated by 41". The brighter group, Nu Scorpii A and B, is split by 1.3" and composed of spectral type
B2 subgiants. The fainter pair, Nu Scorpii C and D, are spectral type B8 and B9 main sequence
dwarfs split by 2.4". Nu Scorpii A is itself a semi-detached spectroscopic binary, having a fainter B-type companion separated by approximately 0.0003 arcseconds.
Since it is near the ecliptic
, Nu Scorpii can be occulted
by the Moon
and, very rarely, by planet
s. Mercury
occulted it on 14 December 1821, but will not occult it again until 2 December 2031. The last occultation by Venus
took place on 27 December 1852 and the next will take place on 30 December 2095. On 29 July 1808 there was an occultation by Neptune
.
Nu Scorpii is the star which causes the reflection nebula cataloged as IC 4592
. Reflection nebulae are actually made up of very fine dust that normally appears dark but can look quite blue when reflecting the light of energetic nearby stars.
In Chinese astronomy
, Nu Scorpii is called 鍵閉, Pinyin
: Jiànbì, meaning Door Bolt, because this star is marking itself and stand alone in Door Bolt asterism, Room
mansion (see : Chinese constellation
).. 鍵閉 (Jiànbì), westernized into Keen Pi, but the name Keen Pi was designated for the formation of λ Sco
(Shaula) and υ Sco
(Lesath) by R.H. Allen and the meaning is "the Two Parts of a Lock."
Star system
A star system or stellar system is a small number of stars which orbit each other, bound by gravitational attraction. A large number of stars bound by gravitation is generally called a star cluster or galaxy, although, broadly speaking, they are also star systems.-Binary star systems:A stellar...
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....
Scorpius
Scorpius
Scorpius, sometimes known as Scorpio, is one of the constellations of the zodiac. Its name is Latin for scorpion, and its symbol is . It lies between Libra to the west and Sagittarius to the east...
.
It is at least a quintuple star, probably a septuple, consisting of two close groups that are separated by 41". The brighter group, Nu Scorpii A and B, is split by 1.3" and composed of spectral type
Stellar 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...
B2 subgiants. The fainter pair, Nu Scorpii C and D, are spectral type B8 and B9 main sequence
Main sequence
The main sequence is a continuous and distinctive band of stars that appears on plots of stellar color versus brightness. These color-magnitude plots are known as Hertzsprung–Russell diagrams after their co-developers, Ejnar Hertzsprung and Henry Norris Russell...
dwarfs split by 2.4". Nu Scorpii A is itself a semi-detached spectroscopic binary, having a fainter B-type companion separated by approximately 0.0003 arcseconds.
Since it is near the ecliptic
Ecliptic
The ecliptic is the plane of the earth's orbit around the sun. In more accurate terms, it is the intersection of the celestial sphere with the ecliptic plane, which is the geometric plane containing the mean orbit of the Earth around the Sun...
, Nu Scorpii can be occulted
Occultation
An occultation is an event that occurs when one object is hidden by another object that passes between it and the observer. The word is used in astronomy . It can also refer to any situation wherein an object in the foreground blocks from view an object in the background...
by the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
and, very rarely, by planet
Planet
A planet is a celestial body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity, is not massive enough to cause thermonuclear fusion, and has cleared its neighbouring region of planetesimals.The term planet is ancient, with ties to history, science,...
s. Mercury
Mercury (planet)
Mercury is the innermost and smallest planet in the Solar System, orbiting the Sun once every 87.969 Earth days. The orbit of Mercury has the highest eccentricity of all the Solar System planets, and it has the smallest axial tilt. It completes three rotations about its axis for every two orbits...
occulted it on 14 December 1821, but will not occult it again until 2 December 2031. The last occultation by Venus
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...
took place on 27 December 1852 and the next will take place on 30 December 2095. On 29 July 1808 there was an occultation by Neptune
Neptune
Neptune is the eighth and farthest planet from the Sun in the Solar System. Named for the Roman god of the sea, it is the fourth-largest planet by diameter and the third largest by mass. Neptune is 17 times the mass of Earth and is slightly more massive than its near-twin Uranus, which is 15 times...
.
Nu Scorpii is the star which causes the reflection nebula cataloged as IC 4592
IC 4592
IC 4592 is a reflection nebula in the Scorpius constellation that is lit by Nu Scorpii.- External links :*...
. Reflection nebulae are actually made up of very fine dust that normally appears dark but can look quite blue when reflecting the light of energetic nearby stars.
In Chinese astronomy
Chinese astronomy
Astronomy in China has a very long history, with historians considering that "they [the Chinese] were the most persistent and accurate observers of celestial phenomena anywhere in the world before the Arabs."...
, Nu Scorpii is called 鍵閉, Pinyin
Pinyin
Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into...
: Jiànbì, meaning Door Bolt, because this star is marking itself and stand alone in Door Bolt asterism, Room
Room (Chinese constellation)
The Room mansion is one of the Twenty-eight mansions of the Chinese constellations. It is one of the eastern mansions of the Azure Dragon.-Asterisms:...
mansion (see : Chinese constellation
Chinese constellation
Chinese constellations are the way the ancient Chinese grouped the stars. They are very different from the modern IAU recognized constellations. This is because the IAU was based on Greco-Roman astronomy instead of Chinese astronomy....
).. 鍵閉 (Jiànbì), westernized into Keen Pi, but the name Keen Pi was designated for the formation of λ Sco
Lambda Scorpii
Lambda Scorpii is the second brightest star system in the constellation Scorpius, and one of the brightest stars in the nighttime sky. It has the Bayer designation λ despite being the second brightest in its constellation...
(Shaula) and υ Sco
Lambda Scorpii
Lambda Scorpii is the second brightest star system in the constellation Scorpius, and one of the brightest stars in the nighttime sky. It has the Bayer designation λ despite being the second brightest in its constellation...
(Lesath) by R.H. Allen and the meaning is "the Two Parts of a Lock."
See also
- AR CassiopeiaeAR CassiopeiaeAR Cassiopeiae is a multiple star system in the constellation of Cassiopeia. It is thought to be a septuple star system. It is only one of two star systems with a multiplicity of 7, the other being Nu Scorpii, with no physical multiple stars of greater multiplicity yet found.The star was...
(IH Cas), another multiple star considered to have a multiplicity of 7
External links
- Image of Nu Scorpii from APODAstronomy Picture of the DayAstronomy Picture of the Day is a website provided by NASA and Michigan Technological University . According to the website, "Each day a different image or photograph of our universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer."The photograph is not necessarily...