Luminosity (bolometric) 26.4 L☉ Constellation Ara | Magnitude 4.575 Apparent magnitude (V) 4.575 | |
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People also search for Delta Arae, Lambda Arae, Zeta Arae | ||
Sigma Arae (σ Ara, σ Arae) is the Bayer designation for a star in the southern constellation of Ara. It is visible to the naked eye with an apparent visual magnitude of +4.575. The distance to this star, based upon an annual parallax shift of 8.62 mas, is around 380 light-years (120 parsecs).
This is an A-type main sequence star with a stellar classification of A0 V. Unusually for an A-type star, X-ray emissions with a luminosity of 4.6 × 1029 erg s−1 have been detected from Sigma Arae. Normally this is explained by the presence of a lower mass orbiting companion star. However, such a scenario does not appear to hold true for this star. Instead, the signature of a surface magnetic field has been detected with a strength of roughly 128 ± 73 Gauss, indicating the source of the X-rays may be surface magnetic activity.