R Aurigae

Not to be confused with Rho Aurigae.

R Aurigae

The visual band light curve of R Aurigae, from AAVSO data[1]
Observation data Epoch J2000.0      Equinox J2000.0 (ICRS)
Constellation	Auriga
Right ascension	05^h 17^m 17.6916^s[2]
Declination	+53° 35′ 10.032″[2]
Apparent magnitude (V)	6.7 to 13.9[3]
Characteristics
Spectral type	M7IIIe[4] (M6e - M9e)[3]
U−B color index	+0.27[5]
B−V color index	+1.66[5]
Variable type	Mira[3]
Astrometry
Radial velocity (Rv)	7.8 ± 2[6] km/s
Proper motion (μ)	RA: 14.708[2] mas/yr Dec.: −14.685[2] mas/yr
Parallax (π)	3.4958 ± 0.1327 mas[2]
Distance	930 ± 40 ly (290 ± 10 pc)
Details
Radius	300[7] R☉
Luminosity	11,530[8] L☉
Temperature	2,385[8] K
Other designations
R Aur, ADS 3845 A, BD+53 882, CCDM J05173+5335A, GC 6435, HD 34019, HIP 24645, HR 1707, IDS 05092+5328 A, SAO 25112[6]
Database references
SIMBAD	data

R Aurigae (R Aur) is a Mira variable, a pulsating red giant star in the constellation of Auriga, at a distance of 930 light years.

In 1862 R Aurigae was found to be a variable star at Bonn Observatory.^[9] It was widely observed in the late 19th century and its spectrum was described in 1890.^[10]In 1907 it appeared with its variable star designation in Annie Jump Cannon's Second Catalogue of Variable Stars.^[9] R Aurigae has an apparent visual magnitude which varies between 6.7 and 13.9 with a period of 450 days.^[3] The light curve varies strongly from cycle to cycle, sometimes having a pronounced hump on the ascending branch and usually having rise and fall times approximately equal. The cycle period has oscillated slowly between about 450 and 465 days.

R Aurigae is catalogued as a component of a double star, with the 10th magnitude HD 233095, although the two stars are unrelated.^[11]

References

1. "Download Data". aavso.org. AAVSO. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
2. Brown, A. G. A.; et al. (Gaia collaboration) (2021). "Gaia Early Data Release 3: Summary of the contents and survey properties". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 649: A1. arXiv:2012.01533. Bibcode:2021A&A...649A...1G. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202039657. S2CID 227254300. (Erratum: doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202039657e). Gaia EDR3 record for this source at VizieR.
3. R Aur, database entry, The combined table of GCVS Vols I-III and NL 67-78 with improved coordinates, General Catalogue of Variable Stars Archived 2017-06-20 at the Wayback Machine, Sternberg Astronomical Institute, Moscow, Russia. Accessed on line November 10, 2009.
4. Skiff, B. A. (1994). "Photometry of Stars in the Field of R Aurigae". Information Bulletin on Variable Stars. 4058: 1. Bibcode:1994IBVS.4058....1S.
5. HR 1707, database entry, The Bright Star Catalogue, 5th Revised Ed. (Preliminary Version), D. Hoffleit and W. H. Warren, Jr., CDS ID V/50. Accessed on line November 10, 2009.
6. "V* R Aur". SIMBAD. Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
7. HD 34019, database entry, Catalog of Apparent Diameters and Absolute Radii of Stars (CADARS), 3rd edition, L. E. Pasinetti-Fracassini, L. Pastori, S. Covino, and A. Pozzi, CDS ID II/224. Accessed on line November 10, 2009.
8. McDonald, I.; et al. (2012). "Fundamental Parameters and Infrared Excesses of Hipparcos Stars". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 427 (1): 343–57. arXiv:1208.2037. Bibcode:2012MNRAS.427..343M. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2012.21873.x. S2CID 118665352.
9. Cannon, Annie J. (1907). "Second catalogue of variable stars". Annals of Harvard College Observatory. 55: 1–94. Bibcode:1907AnHar..55....1C. Retrieved 30 November 2024.
10. "LPV of the Month December, 2016". Retrieved 2021-02-24.
11. Mason, Brian D.; Wycoff, Gary L.; Hartkopf, William I.; Douglass, Geoffrey G.; Worley, Charles E. (2001). "The 2001 US Naval Observatory Double Star CD-ROM. I. The Washington Double Star Catalog". The Astronomical Journal. 122 (6): 3466. Bibcode:2001AJ....122.3466M. doi:10.1086/323920.