95 Herculis, also named Bodu,[12] is a double stellar system in the constellation Hercules, located 432 light-years from Earth.
Nomenclature
[edit]95 Herculis is the star's Flamsteed designation. This star, together with 93 Herculis, 102 Herculis, and 109 Herculis, formed the now obsolete constellation of Cerberus.[13]
In Chinese astronomy, 95 Herculis and 102 Herculis form the asterism Bó Dù (帛度, "Textile Ruler").[14] The IAU Working Group on Star Names approved the name Bodu for 95 Herculis A on 17 June 2025, and it is now so entered in the IAU Catalog of Star Names.[12]
Characteristics
[edit]From the naked eye, 95 Herculis appears as a single star shining at apparent magnitude 4.31. However, when further scrutinized using a telescope, it is revealed to be a double star, with two components separated by 6.3 arcseconds. This system has a color contrast due to the difference of each star's effective temperature.[5]
The brightest component, called 95 Herculis A, is a white giant[6] or subgiant with an apparent magnitude of 4.8.[2] This evolved star has 3.1 times more mass than the Sun, is six times wider, and is 156 times more luminous. Its effective temperature of 8,211 K give it a blue-white hue typical of A-type stars. It is spinning rapidly with an projected rotational velocity of 233 km/s.
The secondary is called 95 Herculis B, a yellow giant[6] of apparent magnitude 5.1.[4] It is the most evolved star in the pair, having reached the helium burning stage, while 95 Herculis A is still in the transition from hydrogen burning to helium burning.[6] Albeit fainter than 95 Her A, 95 Her B emits a significant part of its luminosity in the infrared, and hence the bolometric luminosity is 172 times solar. It is 3.2 times more massive than the Sun and 16.5 times wider. The effective temperature of the star is 5,037 K.
Orbit
[edit]The orbital elements of 95 Herculis are not accurately known and no orbital motion has been detected. However, their projected separation is calculated at 900 astronomical units, with an orbital period of at least 11,000 years.[5]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e Vallenari, A.; et al. (Gaia collaboration) (2023). "Gaia Data Release 3. Summary of the content and survey properties". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 674: A1. arXiv:2208.00211. Bibcode:2023A&A...674A...1G. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202243940. S2CID 244398875. Gaia DR3 record for this source at VizieR.
- ^ a b c d "95 Her A". SIMBAD. Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg. Retrieved 2024-09-15.
- ^ a b c d e f Vallenari, A.; et al. (Gaia collaboration) (2023). "Gaia Data Release 3. Summary of the content and survey properties". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 674: A1. arXiv:2208.00211. Bibcode:2023A&A...674A...1G. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202243940. S2CID 244398875. Gaia DR3 record for this source at VizieR.
- ^ a b c "95 Her B". SIMBAD. Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg. Retrieved 2024-09-15.
- ^ a b c d Kaler, Jim. "95 Herculis". stars.astro.illinois.edu. Retrieved 2024-09-15.
- ^ a b c d "95 Herculis". www.havastro.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-09-15.
- ^ a b Quintana, Alexis L.; Wright, Nicholas J.; Martínez García, Juan (2025). "A census of OB stars within 1 KPC and the star formation and core collapse supernova rates of the Milky Way". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 538 (3): 1367. arXiv:2503.08286. Bibcode:2025MNRAS.538.1367Q. doi:10.1093/mnras/staf083.
- ^ a b c Stassun, Keivan G.; et al. (2019). "The Revised TESS Input Catalog and Candidate Target List". The Astronomical Journal. 158 (4): 138. arXiv:1905.10694. Bibcode:2019AJ....158..138S. doi:10.3847/1538-3881/ab3467.
- ^ Royer, F.; Grenier, S.; Baylac, M.-O.; Gómez, A. E.; Zorec, J. (2002). "Rotational velocities of A-type stars in the northern hemisphere. II. Measurement of v sin I". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 393: 897. arXiv:astro-ph/0205255. Bibcode:2002A&A...393..897R. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20020943.
- ^ a b c Kordopatis, G.; Schultheis, M.; McMillan, P. J.; Palicio, P. A.; De Laverny, P.; Recio-Blanco, A.; Creevey, O.; Álvarez, M. A.; Andrae, R.; Poggio, E.; Spitoni, E.; Contursi, G.; Zhao, H.; Oreshina-Slezak, I.; Ordenovic, C.; Bijaoui, A. (2023). "Stellar ages, masses, extinctions, and orbital parameters based on spectroscopic parameters of Gaia DR3". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 669: A104. arXiv:2206.07937. Bibcode:2023A&A...669A.104K. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202244283.
- ^ De Medeiros, J. R.; do Nascimento, J. D., Jr.; Sankarankutty, S.; Costa, J. M.; Maia, M. R. G. (2000). "Rotation and lithium in single giant stars". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 363: 239. arXiv:astro-ph/0010273. Bibcode:2000A&A...363..239D.
}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b "IAU Catalog of Star Names". Retrieved 17 June 2025.
- ^ Ridpath, Ian. "Star Tales - Cerberus". Retrieved 10 June 2025.
- ^ "Bodu (帛度)". All Skies Encyclopaedia. IAU Working Group on Star Names. Retrieved 10 June 2025.