Is Acrux a giant star?
To the naked eye Acrux appears as a single star, but it is actually a multiple star system containing six components. Both components are B-type stars, and are many times more massive and luminous than the Sun.
What is the diameter of Acrux?
The best time of year to see the stars and deep sky objects in Crux is during the month of May. The 10 brightest stars in Crux are Acrux (Alpha Cru, mag. 0.76), Mimosa (Beta Cru, mag….Alpha Crucis C – HR 4729.
| Spectral class | B5 V |
|---|---|
| Mass | 9.65 M☉ |
| Radius | 5.5 R☉ |
| Age | 12 million years |
| Rotational velocity | 131 km/s |
How bright is Acrux compared to the sun?
Acrux is at around 321 light-years / 99 parsecs away from the Sun. It is around 17.80 times more massive than our Sun and around 25.000 times brighter. Alpha-2 Crucis is a blue dwarf of spectral type B1V. It is around 15.52 times more massive than our Sun and around 16.000 times brighter.
What kind of star is Acrux?
Acrux is a Spectroscopic Binary type star. Acrux is a main star in the constellation Crux and makes up the constellation outline. Based on the spectral type (B0. 5IV) of the star, the star’s colour is blue .
Is Acrux a double star?
Acrux is really two stars. Acrux is located about 321 light-years from Earth, and it is, in fact, not one star but two nearly identical B-class stars. These can be resolved – separated – in a small telescope, making Acrux a nice double star, although, to the unaided eye, Acrux appears as a single star.
What is the 13th brightest star?
Alpha Crucis, also called Acrux, brightest star in the southern constellation Crux (the Southern Cross) and the 13th brightest star in the sky. Alpha Crucis is about 320 light-years from Earth.
What color is the acrux star?
blue
The two stars in the Acrux system are blue in color and separated from each other by 4.5 arc seconds. The integrated apparent, or visual, magnitude of Acrux is +0.87.
How far away is acrux?
322.9 light years
Acrux/Distance to Earth
Who discovered the Acrux star?
King Louis XIV of France
In 1685 several Jesuit missionaries sent to Siam by King Louis XIV of France discovered that Acrux is a double star. The two stars in the Acrux system are blue in color and separated from each other by 4.5 arc seconds. The integrated apparent, or visual, magnitude of Acrux is +0.87.
Is the star Acrux in the constellation of Crux?
Acrux /ˈeɪkrʌks/, designated α Crucis (Latinised to Alpha Crucis, abbreviated Alpha Cru, α Cru) is a multiple star system 321 light-years from the Sun in the constellation of Crux and part of the asterism known as the Southern Cross.
How big is Acrux compared to the Sun?
Acrux estimated radius has been calculated as being 4.74 times bigger than the Sun. The Sun’s radius is 695,800km, therefore the star’s radius is an estimated 3,299,945.35.km. If you need the diameter of the star, you just need to multiple the radius by 2.
What are the components of the Acrux star system?
These two components are designated Alpha 1 Crucis and Alpha 2 Crucis and commonly referred to as Acrux A and Acrux B. The third component, Acrux C, is also visible in small telescopes. It is more distant from the two brighter components, lying at a separation of 90 arcseconds from the main pair.
How big is the star system Alpha Crucis?
Alpha 1 Crucis is a spectroscopic binary system consisting of Alpha Crucis Aa, formally named Acrux, and Alpha Crucis Ab. The components are believed to have about 14 and 10 solar masses, which makes both stars supernova candidates.