Beta Monocerotis
Encyclopedia
Beta Monocerotis is a triple star system
in the constellation
of Monoceros. To the naked eye, it appears as a single star with an apparent visual magnitude of approximately 3.74, making it the brightest visible star in the constellation. The star system consists of three Be stars, β Monocerotis A, β Monocerotis B, and β Monocerotis C. There is also an additional visual companion
star that is probably not physically close to the other three stars.
with a mass of approximately 7 solar masses and a luminosity
of 3,200 times the Sun
's.
with a mass of approximately 6.2 solar masses and a luminosity
of 1,600 times the Sun
's.
with a mass of approximately 6 solar masses and a luminosity
of 1,300 times the Sun
's. This star was observed to be double in speckle interferometric observations in 1988, but this has not been confirmed by later infrared observations.
, CCDM J06288-0702D, which has an apparent visual magnitude of approximately 12 and is visible approximately 25 arcseconds away from β Monocerotis A. It is probably not physically close to the other three stars, merely appearing next to them in the sky.
Star system
A star system or stellar system is a small number of stars which orbit each other, bound by gravitational attraction. A large number of stars bound by gravitation is generally called a star cluster or galaxy, although, broadly speaking, they are also star systems.-Binary star systems:A stellar...
in the constellation
Constellation
In modern astronomy, a constellation is an internationally defined area of the celestial sphere. These areas are grouped around asterisms, patterns formed by prominent stars within apparent proximity to one another on Earth's night sky....
of Monoceros. To the naked eye, it appears as a single star with an apparent visual magnitude of approximately 3.74, making it the brightest visible star in the constellation. The star system consists of three Be stars, β Monocerotis A, β Monocerotis B, and β Monocerotis C. There is also an additional visual companion
Double star
In observational astronomy, a double star is a pair of stars that appear close to each other in the sky as seen from Earth when viewed through an optical telescope. This can happen either because the pair forms a binary star, i.e...
star that is probably not physically close to the other three stars.
Beta Monocerotis A
Beta Monocerotis A (Beta Mon A, β Monocerotis A, β Mon A) is a Be starBe star
A Be star is a B-type star with prominent emission lines of hydrogen in its spectrum. The designation is combined by the spectral class, B, and the lowercase e denoting emission in the spectral classification system. Line emission from other atomic ions might be present as well, but is typically...
with a mass of approximately 7 solar masses and a luminosity
Luminosity
Luminosity is a measurement of brightness.-In photometry and color imaging:In photometry, luminosity is sometimes incorrectly used to refer to luminance, which is the density of luminous intensity in a given direction. The SI unit for luminance is candela per square metre.The luminosity function...
of 3,200 times the Sun
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
's.
Beta Monocerotis B
Beta Monocerotis B (Beta Mon B / β Monocerotis B / β Mon B) is a Be starBe star
A Be star is a B-type star with prominent emission lines of hydrogen in its spectrum. The designation is combined by the spectral class, B, and the lowercase e denoting emission in the spectral classification system. Line emission from other atomic ions might be present as well, but is typically...
with a mass of approximately 6.2 solar masses and a luminosity
Luminosity
Luminosity is a measurement of brightness.-In photometry and color imaging:In photometry, luminosity is sometimes incorrectly used to refer to luminance, which is the density of luminous intensity in a given direction. The SI unit for luminance is candela per square metre.The luminosity function...
of 1,600 times the Sun
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
's.
Beta Monocerotis C
Beta Monocerotis C (Beta Mon C / β Monocerotis C / β Mon C) is a Be starBe star
A Be star is a B-type star with prominent emission lines of hydrogen in its spectrum. The designation is combined by the spectral class, B, and the lowercase e denoting emission in the spectral classification system. Line emission from other atomic ions might be present as well, but is typically...
with a mass of approximately 6 solar masses and a luminosity
Luminosity
Luminosity is a measurement of brightness.-In photometry and color imaging:In photometry, luminosity is sometimes incorrectly used to refer to luminance, which is the density of luminous intensity in a given direction. The SI unit for luminance is candela per square metre.The luminosity function...
of 1,300 times the Sun
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
's. This star was observed to be double in speckle interferometric observations in 1988, but this has not been confirmed by later infrared observations.
Visual companion
The triple star system has a visual companionDouble star
In observational astronomy, a double star is a pair of stars that appear close to each other in the sky as seen from Earth when viewed through an optical telescope. This can happen either because the pair forms a binary star, i.e...
, CCDM J06288-0702D, which has an apparent visual magnitude of approximately 12 and is visible approximately 25 arcseconds away from β Monocerotis A. It is probably not physically close to the other three stars, merely appearing next to them in the sky.