Gliese 623b - One of the Smallest Stars in the Galaxy
What's in a Name: | The 623rd entry in the Gliese catalog of stars within 25 parsecs of the Sun (originally published in 1969). "B" means the secondary star in a binary system. |
Claim to Fame: | One of the smallest stars in the Milky Way Galaxy. Part of a double star system. Orbits about its companion in 4 years. Hubble was able to separate the star from its companion for the first time in images shown here. |
Type of Star: | Red Dwarf Star (Main Sequence). Once thought to be the most abundant type of star in the galaxy but surprisingly found to be very rare. Unsolved Mystery. |
How Far Away: | 25 light years away |
How Big: | 1/10 of the sun's mass |
How Bright: | 1/60,000 of the sun's luminosity (if placed at the sun's location in the solar system would look only eight times brighter than the full moon to us.) |
Where to View: | Located in the constellation Hercules |
When to View: | This star not visible without the Hubble. Best to view Hercules from May through October. |
Last modified June 15, 2005 by Travis Metcalfe.