Thursday, August 22, 2024

T CrB the Blaze Star (overnight)

In late August, the distinctive constellation of Corona Borealis (the Northern Crown) sits halfway up the western evening sky, about 20 degrees to the northeast of the bright star Arcturus. A circle of seven stars approximately 7 degrees in diameter forms a tiara festooned by the bright star Alphekka or "jewel". The star T Coronae Borealis, nick-named the Blaze Star, is a
recurrent nova that explodes on average, every 80 years. The binary system, which is located approximately 3,000 light-years from our sun, consists of a white dwarf star closely orbiting a red giant and drawing mass from it. Most
of the time the combined star system shines at magnitude 10. During an outburst, which is predicted to occur sometime before the end of this year,
the star?s brightness leaps to magnitude 2.0, equal to nearby Alphecca. T CrB is located 1 degree southeast of magnitude 4.12 star Epsilon CrB. Observe it frequently to catch its outburst, which typically brightens over hours, peaks for half a day, and fades days later.

(Data courtesy of Starry Night)
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* Origin: CJ's Place, Orange City FL > cjsplace.thruhere.net (954:895/61)