Rigil Kentaurus A
Rigil Kentaurus A | |
The habitable moon Pandora. | |
Stellar characteristics | |
---|---|
Constellation | Centaurus |
Right ascension (Epoch J2000) | 14h 39m 36.4951s |
Declination (Epoch J2000) | -60° 50' 02.308" |
Spectral type | G2V |
Distance from Sol | 4.365 ± 0.007 ly |
Other designations | Alpha Centauri A, α Cen A, α¹ Centauri, GJ 559 A, HR 5459, HD 128620, GCTP 3309.00, LHS 50, SAO 252838, HIP 71683 |
Planets | Klymene (Kentaurus A I) Epimetheus (Kentaurus A II) Anchiale (Kentaurus A III) Perses (Kentaurus A IV) Leto (Kentaurus A V) Cronus (Kentaurus A VI) |
Alpha Centauri A or Rigil Kentaurus ("Foot of the Centaur" in Arabic) is the fourth brightest star in the night sky as well as the brightest star in Constellation Centaurus. Like Sol, it is a yellow-orange main sequence dwarf star of spectral and luminosity type G2 V.
(Boilerplate from SolStation.com)
Together with Alpha Centauri B and Proxima Centauri Alpha Centauri A forms a loose trinary system[1], and is one of the closest stars to Sol at a distance of about 4.40 light-years. Alpha Centauri A and B orbit a common point at an average distance of about 23.7 AUs.
Rigil Kentaurus A System
The Kentaurus A system was first surveyed by the Trekkie Phoenix expedition in early 2009. The system consists of six planets, Klymene, Epimetheus, Anchiale, Perses, Leto and Cronus.
(It should be noted here that, once the Rigil Kentaurus system was named, a general moratorium was declared on using Greco-Roman mythology for planet names; all the good ones are already in use back home.)
Epimetheus, the largest gas giant in the system, holds special interest because of its habitable moon Pandora. Pandora is the first life-bearing world discovered away from Sol, containing a viable ecosystem similar to that of Earth's Devonian period. Unfortunately, Pandora's atmosphere is not breathable by humans, meaning the moon is relegated to wildlife studies and other scientific endeavors[2]. Starbase 2 was placed in Pandora orbit as a permanent research facility.
Anchiale, the next planet out from Epimetheus, is notable as a slightly-denser and marginally more habitable Mars analogue.
Notes
- ↑ There is some debate about wether or not Proxima Centauri is actually part of a trinary system with the others, see SolStation.com for more details.
- ↑ The Federation Colonial Service has entertained studies on colonizing Pandora (see da Quirm, L., "City-Scale Filtration Tents and Their Applications." Prometheus Forge, 2015) though it has not yet put any plan into action.