Xi Cancri
Encyclopedia
Xi Cancri is a spectroscopic binary in the constellation
Cancer
. It is approximately 381 light years from Earth
.
(Alterf), were the Persian Nahn, "the Nose", and the Coptic Piautos, "the Eye", both lunar asterisms..
Nahn was the title of this star in the catalogue of stars in Technical Memorandum 33-507 - A Reduced Star Catalog Containing 537 Named Stars.
giant
with an apparent magnitude
of +5.16. Its companion, ξ Cancri B, is 0.1 arcseconds from the primary. The two stars complete one orbit about their common centre of mass once every 4.66 years.
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....
Cancer
Cancer (constellation)
Cancer is one of the twelve constellations of the zodiac. Its name is Latin for crab and it is commonly represented as such. Its symbol is . Cancer is small and its stars are faint...
. It is approximately 381 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...
.
Name
This star, along with λ LeoLambda Leonis
Lambda Leonis is a star in the constellation Leo. It has the traditional name Alterf, from the Arabic الطرف "the view "....
(Alterf), were the Persian Nahn, "the Nose", and the Coptic Piautos, "the Eye", both lunar asterisms..
Nahn was the title of this star in the catalogue of stars in Technical Memorandum 33-507 - A Reduced Star Catalog Containing 537 Named Stars.
Structure
The primary component, ξ Cancri A, is a yellow G-typeStellar 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...
giant
Giant star
A giant star is a star with substantially larger radius and luminosity than a main sequence star of the same surface temperature. Typically, giant stars have radii between 10 and 100 solar radii and luminosities between 10 and 1,000 times that of the Sun. Stars still more luminous than giants are...
with an 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...
of +5.16. Its companion, ξ Cancri B, is 0.1 arcseconds from the primary. The two stars complete one orbit about their common centre of mass once every 4.66 years.