Gamma Leporis
Encyclopedia
Gamma Leporis is a star
that is located at a distance of about 29 light-year
s from Earth
. Gamma Leporis lies in the south central part of the constellation
Lepus
, southeast of Beta Leporis
and southwest of Delta Leporis. It has a common proper motion
companion, AK Leporis, which is a variable star of the BY Draconis type
. The star is a member of the Ursa Major Moving Group
.
This star is larger than the Sun
with 1.2 times the radius of the Sun and 1.3 times the Sun's mass
. Based upon its stellar characteristics and distance from Earth, Gamma Leporis is considered a high-priority target for NASA's Terrestrial Planet Finder
mission.
Star
A star is a massive, luminous sphere of plasma held together by gravity. At the end of its lifetime, a star can also contain a proportion of degenerate matter. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth...
that is located at a distance of about 29 light-year
Light-year
A light-year, also light year or lightyear is a unit of length, equal to just under 10 trillion kilometres...
s from Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
. Gamma Leporis lies in the south central part of 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....
Lepus
Lepus (constellation)
Lepus is a constellation lying just south of the celestial equator, immediately south of Orion. Its name is Latin for hare. Although the hare does not represent any particular figure in Greek mythology, Lepus was one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy, and it...
, southeast of Beta Leporis
Beta Leporis
Beta Leporis is the second brightest star in the constellation of Lepus. It is a G-type bright giant star approximately 159 light-years from the Earth and has an apparent visual magnitude of approximately 2.84.It is also known as Nihal,"quenching their thirst"...
and southwest of Delta Leporis. It has a common proper motion
Proper motion
The proper motion of a star is its angular change in position over time as seen from the center of mass of the solar system. It is measured in seconds of arc per year, arcsec/yr, where 3600 arcseconds equal one degree. This contrasts with radial velocity, which is the time rate of change in...
companion, AK Leporis, which is a variable star of the BY Draconis type
BY Draconis variable
BY Draconis variables are main sequence variable stars of late spectral types, usually K or M. The name comes from the archetype for this category of variable star system, BY Draconis. They exhibit variations in their luminosity due to rotation of the star coupled with star spots, and other...
. The star is a member of the Ursa Major Moving Group
Ursa Major Moving Group
The Ursa Major Moving Group, also known as Collinder 285 or Ursa Major association, is a nearby stellar moving group, a set of stars with common velocities in space and thought to have a common origin. Its core is located roughly 80 light years away...
.
This star is larger than 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...
with 1.2 times the radius of the Sun and 1.3 times the Sun's mass
Solar mass
The solar mass , , is a standard unit of mass in astronomy, used to indicate the masses of other stars and galaxies...
. Based upon its stellar characteristics and distance from Earth, Gamma Leporis is considered a high-priority target for NASA's Terrestrial Planet Finder
Terrestrial Planet Finder
The Terrestrial Planet Finder was a proposed project by NASA to construct a system of telescopes for detecting extrasolar terrestrial planets. TPF was postponed several times and finally cancelled...
mission.