Magnitude 8.67 Apparent magnitude (V) 8.67 | Constellation Cassiopeia | |
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Similar NGC 7635, Chi Cassiopeiae, Lambda Cassiopeiae, Psi Cassiopeiae | ||
BD+60°2522 is a bright O-class star that has produced the Bubble Nebula (NGC 7635) with its stellar wind. The exact classification of the star is uncertain, with a number of spectral peculiarities and inconsistencies between the appearance of the star itself and the effects on the nearby nebulosity, but it is undoubtedly a highly luminous hot massive star. Direct spectroscopy yields a spectral class of O6.5 and an effective temperature around 37,500K. It is a member of the Cassiopeia OB2 stellar association in the Perseus Arm of the galaxy at about 8,500 light years distance.
Although BD+60°2522 is around two million years old, the surrounding nebula is apparently only about 40,000 years old. The bubble is expected to be formed as a shock front where the stellar wind meets interstellar material at supersonic speeds. The wind from BD+60°2522 is travelling outwards at 1,800 - 2,500 km/s, causing the star to lose over a millionth of the mass of the sun every year.