Magnitude 4.5 Apparent magnitude (V) 4.5 | Constellation Puppis | |
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People also search for Chi Puppis, HD 54893, HD 61772 | ||
k Puppis (k Pup, k Puppis) is a Bayer designation given to an optical double star in the constellation Puppis, the two components being k1 Puppis and k2 Puppis.
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Bayer designation
Note that the Bayer designation for this star is "k" not "kappa" (κ). In Bayer's original Uranometria, k Puppis was listed as ρ (rho) Navis. When Lacaille broke apart the large constellation Argo Navis into Carina, Puppis, and Vela, he re-designated the stars with greek letters in a single sequence across all three constellations. Additionally, Lacaille used latin letters for many additional stars. κ (kappa) is in the constellation of Vela and so there is no kappa in Puppis. The confusion also extends to the proper name Markab which properly applies to κ Velorum (and other stars) but which has also been used for k Puppis when it is called κ Puppis.
Description
Both k1 Puppis and k2 Puppis are bright blue B-type stars of nearly equal brightness, +4.50 and +4.62, respectively. To the naked eye, the pair has a combined magnitude of +3.80. On the sky, the two stars are separated by approximately 9.9 seconds of arc along PA 318°. The optical pair can be distinguished easily with a small telescope. The component k1 Puppis is a binary star system in its own right, while k2 Puppis is a variable star. Each star within the k Puppis optical pair is between 450 and 470 light years from Earth.