K Puppis

Starbox short
name=k¹ Puppis
epoch=J2000.0
constell=Puppis
ra=07^h 38^m 49.88^s
dec=-26° 48' 14.0"
spectral=B6V
appmag_v=+4.50
absmag_v=-1.92
dist_ly=454
dist_pc=139.26
names=HR 2948, HD 61555, SAO 174198, NSV 3673, HIP 37229Starbox short
name=k² Puppis
epoch=J2000.0
constell=Puppis
ra=07^h 38^m 49.80^s
dec=-26° 48' 13.0"
spectral=B5IV
appmag_v=+4.62
absmag_v=-1.81
dist_ly=462
dist_pc=141.72
names=HR 2949, HD 61556, SAO 174199, NSV 3673

k Puppis (k Pup / k Puppis) is a Bayer designation given to an optical double star in the constellation Puppis, the two components being k¹ Puppis and k² Puppis. Note that the designation here is "k" not "kappa" (κ) as some astronomers teach. Many of Puppis' stellar designations are English labels. This pair of stars is given the traditional Arabic name Markeb or Markab.

Both k¹ Puppis and k² Puppis are bright blue B-type giant stars of nearly equal brightness, +4.50 and +4.62, respectively. To the naked eye, the pair has a combined magnitude of +3.80. On the sky, the two stars are separated by approximately 9.9 seconds of arc along PA 318º. The optical pair can be distinguished easily with a small telescope. The component k¹ Puppis is a binary star system in its own right, while k² Puppis is a variable star. Each star within the k Puppis optical pair is between 450 and 470 light years from Earth.

References

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External links

* [http://www.alcyone.de/cgi-bin/search.pl?object=HR2948 Yale Bright Star Catalog: k¹ Puppis]
* [http://www.alcyone.de/cgi-bin/search.pl?object=HR2949 Yale Bright Star Catalog: k² Puppis]
* [http://www.dibonsmith.com/pup_con.htm Puppis]