Xi Ursae Majoris

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Xi Ursae Majoris
Xi Ursae Majoris is located in 100x100
Xi Ursae Majoris

The red circle shows the location of Xi Ursae Majoris in Ursa Major
Observation data
Epoch J2000      Equinox J2000
Constellation Ursa Major
Right ascension 11h 18m 11.0s
Declination +31° 31′ 45″
Apparent magnitude (V) 3.79 (4.32/4.84)
Characteristics
Spectral type G0 Ve/G0 Ve
U−B color index 0.04
B−V color index 0.59
Variable type  ?
Astrometry
Radial velocity (Rv) -15.0 km/s
Proper motion (μ) RA: -429 mas/yr
Dec.: -587 mas/yr
Parallax (π) 113.20 ± 4.60[1] mas
Distance 29 ± 1 ly
(8.8 ± 0.4 pc)
Absolute magnitude (MV) 4.71/5.23
Details
Mass 1.05/0.90 M☉
Radius 1.01/0.78 R☉
Luminosity 1.1/0.67 L☉
Temperature ~5,900/5,900 K
Metallicity 0.98/0.76
Rotation 3 km/s
Age 6 × 109 years
Orbit[2]
Companion ξ UMa A
Period (P) 59.878 yr
Semi-major axis (a) 2.536"
Eccentricity (e) 0.398
Inclination (i) 127.94°
Longitude of the node (Ω) 101.85 (ascending)°
Periastron epoch (T) 1935.195
Other designations
Alula Australis, ξ Ursae Majoris, ξ UMa, Xi UMa, 53 UMa Ursae Majoris, BD+32°2132, CCDM J11182+3132AB, GC 15537, HD 98230/98231, HIP 55203, HR 4374/4375, IDS 11128+3206 AB / 11128+3206, SAO 62484, WDS J11182+3132AB.
Database references
SIMBAD The system
AabBab
Aab
Bab
Bb
WISE J1118+3125

Xi Ursae Majoris (Xi UMa, ξ Ursae Majoris, ξ UMa) is a star system in the constellation Ursa Major. On May 2, 1780, Sir William Herschel discovered that this was a binary star system, making it the first such system ever discovered. It was the first visual double star for which an orbit was calculated, when it was computed by Félix Savary in 1828.

The two components are yellow G-type main-sequence stars. The brighter component, Xi Ursae Majoris A, has a mean apparent magnitude of +4.41. It is classified as an RS Canum Venaticorum type variable star and its brightness varies by 0.01 magnitudes. The companion star, Xi Ursae Majoris B has an apparent magnitude of +4.87. The orbital period of the two stars is 59.84 years, and they are currently separated by 1.2 arcseconds, or at least 10 AUs.

Each component of this double star is itself a spectroscopic binary. B's binary companion, denoted Xi Ursae Majoris Bb, is unresolved, but the binary star is known to have an orbital period of 3.98 days. The masses of both A and B's companions (Ab and Bb) (deduced by the sum total mass of the system minus the likely masses of Aa and Ba determined by their class) indicate that they are probably MV stars (red dwarfs), Bb being on the cool end of the M spectrum, not much hotter than a brown dwarf.[3]

It also has the proper name Alula Australis[4] (and erroneously Alula Australe[5]).

Name and etymology

Orbit of Xi Ursae Majoris.

WISE J111838.70+312537.9

In 2012 Wright et al. discovered the fifth component and the second brown dwarf (if Bb is also a brown dwarf) of the system using Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) data — a T8.5 brown dwarf WISE J111838.70+312537.9 with angular separation 8.5 arc-min, and the projected physical separation about 4000 AU.[8]:{{{3}}}

Notes

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ http://www.astro.illinois.edu/~jkaler/sow/alulaaus.html
  4. ↑ Piazzi, G., The Palermo Catalogue, Palermo, 1814.
  5. ↑ Bečvář, A., Atlas Coeli (Atlas of the Heavens) II - Catalogue, Plague, 1964.
  6. ↑ Richard Hinckley Allen :Star Names — Their Lore and Meaning - Ursa Major, the Greater Bear
  7. ↑ (Chinese) (Activities of Exhibition and Education in Astronomy) 天文教育資訊網 2006 年 6 月 21 日
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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