Miaplacidus / Beta Carinae Star Facts (Type, Distance, Magnitude, Age, Colour, Location and more)

Miaplacidus, also known as Beta Carinae (Bayer) is a subgiant star located in the constellation of Carina, The Keel. Miaplacidus is a major star and forms part of the constellation.

Based on the spectral type (A2IV), Miaplacidus colour is blue - white, although not the hottest stars, they are considerably hotter than our own star which is white.

Miaplacidus temperature is in the range of between 7,500 and 10,000 Kelvin. Miaplacidus effective temperature is 9,220 Kelvin which is hotter than the Sun's effective temperature, which is 5,777 Kelvin. The uncertainty range for the effective temperature is between -8890 and +9550. Miaplacidus is the 28th brightest star in the night sky and the 3rd brightest star in Carina based on the Hipparcos 2007 apparent magnitude. Based on a parallax of 28.82, Miaplacidus distance from Earth can be calculated at being 113.17 light years away or 34.08 parsecs.

Miaplacidus is a naked-eye star, so you don't need a telescope or binoculars when you look up on a clear night. The lower the magnitude, the easier it will be to see it.

Location

The location of the Miaplacidus in the night sky is determined by the right ascension (R.A.) and declination (Dec.). These are equivalent to the Longitude and Latitude on Earth. The Right Ascension (Longitude) is expressed in time (hh:mm:ss) and is how far the star is along Earth's celestial equator. If the R.A. is positive, then it's eastwards and vice versa.

The Declination (Latitude) is how far north or south the object is compared to the celestial equator and is expressed in degrees. If the value is positive, it is north of the celestial equator. For Miaplacidus, the location is 09h 13m 12.24 and -69° 43` 02.9 .

Based on the location of Carina, Miaplacidus can be located in the southern hemisphere of the celestial sky. The celestial hemisphere is equivalent to the hemispheres on Earth. Miaplacidus is south of the Ecliptic. The Ecliptic is the path that the Earth takes as it orbits the Sun. As the Earth is titled, we therefore have Celestial and Ecliptic hemispheres and they can be different for a star.

Physical Properties

Spectral Type

Miaplacidus spectral type of A2IV which means its colour and type is blue - white subgiant star. There is no relationship between colour and size. For example, a red star can be large or small. Small stars are more energy efficient than larger stars and live longer.

Miaplacidus Luminosity

Luminosity is the amount of energy a star pumps out relative to the amount that our star, the Sun, gives out. Our star, the Sun's value is 1. Miaplacidus luminosity figure of 226.05 is based on the value in the Simbad Hipparcos Extended Catalogue at the University of Strasbourg from 2012. The star generates more energy than our star.

Miaplacidus Surface Gravity

The Surface Gravity of Miaplacidus as measured in CGS (Centimeter-Gram-Second) is 3.500. The gravity has a relationship to its mass and radius. The larger the mass, the larger the gravity. Miaplacidus surface gravity has an uncertainty range of between - and +.

Magnitude (Apparent / Absolute / Visible)

A number represents a star’s magnitude, whether apparent/visual or absolute. The smaller the number, the brighter the star is. The Sun is the brightest star and therefore has the lowest of all magnitudes, -26.74. A faint star will have a high number.

Miaplacidus apparent magnitude is 1.67, which is a measure of the star's brightness as seen from Earth. Apparent Magnitude is also known as Visual Magnitude.

If you use the 1997 parallax value, Miaplacidus' absolute magnitude is -0.99. If you use the 2007 parallax value, Miaplacidus' absolute magnitude is -1.03. Absolute Magnitude is the star's apparent magnitude from 10 parsecs or 32.6 light years. The magnitude assumes nothing is between the object and the viewer, such as dust clouds. To compare different stars' actual brightness, you would best use Absolute rather than Apparent Magnitude.

Miaplacidus is visible from Earth without needing binoculars or a telescope. The lower the Apparent Magnitude of a star or other object is, the easier it is to see in the night sky. An object with a magnitude greater than 6.5 cannot be seen without a telescope or other device.