Gamma Piscis Austrini Explained

Gamma Piscis Austrini, Latinized from γ Piscis Austrini, is binary star system in the southern constellation of Piscis Austrinus. It is visible to the naked eye with a combined apparent visual magnitude of +4.448. As of 2010, the pair had an angular separation of 4 arc seconds along a position angle of 255°. Based upon an annual parallax shift of as seen from the Earth, the system is located about 203 light years from the Sun.

The magnitude 4.59 primary, component A, is a white-hued, chemically peculiar A-type main sequence star with a stellar classification of . It is an estimated 214 million years old with 2.63 times the mass of the Sun. The fainter magnitude 8.20 companion, component B, is an F-type main sequence star with a class of F5 V.

Gamma Piscis Austrini is moving through the Galaxy at a speed of 24.1 km/s relative to the Sun. Its projected Galactic orbit carries it between 66240NaN0 and 9475pc from the center of the Galaxy. It came closest to the Sun 1.8 million years ago at a distance of 48.13pc.

Naming

In Chinese, Chinese: 敗臼 (Chinese: Bài Jiù), meaning Decayed Mortar, refers to an asterism consisting of refers to an asterism consisting of γ Piscis Austrini, γ Gruis, λ Gruis and 19 Piscis Austrini. Consequently, the Chinese name for γ Piscis Austrini itself is Chinese: 敗臼三 (Chinese: Bài Jiù sān, English: the Third Star of Decayed Mortar.)[1]

Notes and References

  1. AEEA (Activities of Exhibition and Education in Astronomy) 天文教育資訊網 2006 年 7 月 5 日