Planets were first discovered around this star using Chile's Transiting Planets and Planetesimals Small Telescope (TRAPPIST), in 2010. Many of these planets orbit in the habitable region of the star - the zone in which water could potentially exist on the planets' surfaces. What are scientists looking for in Aquarius?Īquarius hosts the ultracool star TRAPPIST-1, which is only 40 light-years from Earth (about 10 times the distance from our planet to the nearest star system, Alpha Centauri.) In 2017, astronomers announced that the star hosts at least seven exoplanets, all Earth-sized worlds that are likely also rocky. According to NASA, that’s one of the most intriguing features of this type of object. Like many planetary nebulae, the Helix Nebula emits waves across a broad swath of the spectrum, from ultraviolet to infrared, and appears similar when viewed in each wavelength. Location: 22h 29m 38.55s (right ascension), −20° 50' 13.6"(declination)Īquarius also boasts one of the closest of all planetary nebulae - NGC 7293, or the Helix Nebula - which is less than 700 light-years from Earth. Saturn NebulaĪpproximate distance from Earth: 650 light-years There are 60 arcmins in a degree and 60 arcsecs in an arcmin. Its units are degrees, arcminutes and arcseconds. Like Earth's latitude, declination measures north and south. It’s measured in hours, minutes and seconds.ĭeclination tells you how high an object will rise in the sky. Right ascension is to the sky what longitude is to the surface of the Earth, corresponding to east and west directions. For example, an object of a -1 magnitude is brighter than one with a magnitude of +2. The lower the number of an object’s magnitude, the brighter the object. Magnitude tells you how bright an object is as it appears from the Earth. In order to find the planetary nebulae, it’s helpful to know their magnitude, right ascension (RA) and declination (Dec). If you need equipment, our best binoculars and best telescopes guides may help. For the best view of these objects, we recommend using binoculars or a telescope. Aquarius observing targetsĪquarius includes several planetary nebulas. The "stream of water" pouring from the jar consists of more than 20 stars, ending with the star Fomalhaut. The other stars in the asterism forming the jar are gamma, phi and eta Aquarii. Zeta Aquarii is at the center of the Y-shaped configuration that forms Aquarius' water jar. Gamma Aquarii, or Sadachbia, has a magnitude of 3.8 according to Constellation Guide. It is located around 520 light-years from the sun and has a magnitude of 2.95. It is nearly 600 light-years from our sun.Īlpha Aquarii, or Sadalmelik, is also a yellow supergiant star, writes the astronomy website Star Facts. The star has a magnitude of 2.87, according to a 1966 paper published in the journal Communications of the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, which means it appears relatively dim in our sky. While its mass is just five times that of the sun, its volume is close to 50 times the sun's volume, according to a 2017 paper from The Astronomical Journal. The brightest star in the Aquarius constellation, according to Star Facts, is a rare yellow supergiant known as beta Aquarii, also known as Sadalsuud. Orion Constellation: Facts, location and stars of the hunter Stars: Facts about stellar formation, history and classification Book reviews for three guides to the stars and constellations
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