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HR 2950 — Double Star in Canis Minor

Magnitude 6.0m DoubleStar Canis Minor (CMi) Visible
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1Physical Properties

Magnitude 6.02
Spectral Type A0III giant
Star Color Blue-white (B-V -0.04)
Distance 233 ly

2Position & Identifiers

RA 07h 40m 07.0s
Dec +05° 13' 51.0"
Constellation Canis Minor (CMi)
HR 2950
HD 61563
SAO 115773
Double Cat 6263

3How easy to split?

Primary 6.0 mag Companion 7.0 mag Separation 0.8″
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Telescope Bortle 3 Bortle 4 Bortle 5
80mm refr. V. hard V. hard V. hard
150mm Newt. V. hard+ V. hard+ V. hard+
C8 203mm Hard Hard Hard
Easy Medium Hard Very hard Impossible

Bortle 3 = rural · 4 = outer suburbs · 5 = suburbs

To reach "Medium" at Bortle 3, you'd need at least a 290 mm reflector.

4Visibility

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Best season Dec – Feb (peak: Jan)

5Multiple Star System Triple C: optical

Components 3 (triple)
Component IDs AB
Separation 0.8″
Companion Mag 7.0
Position Angle 176°
Star Colors A: Blue-white B: White
Discoverer STF1126
AB binary.

Separation over time

Period: 1252.3 y Eccentricity: 0.826 Now: 0.78", PA 181° -0.03" in 5 years
0.00" 0.23" 0.47" 0.70" 0.93" 2025 2030 2035 2040 2045 0.78"

Apparent separation over time, computed from ORB6 orbital elements. Steep curves indicate fast-changing pairs — catch them while they're splittable.

Eyepiece View

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80x Dawes: 1.9″ TFOV: 0.6°
Realistic = true angular size
N E 176°

A: 6.0 · B: 7.0 · Sep: 0.8″ · PA: 176° · N up, E right

Unresolved · Rayleigh: 2.3″ · Dawes: 1.9″ · Eff: 2.3″

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6

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7

Spectral Classification

8

Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram

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Read: The Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram — Reading Stars Like a Map
9

Stellar Lifecycle

10

Blackbody Spectrum

11

Stellar Absorption Spectrum

Simulated absorption spectrum based on spectral type. Hover over lines to identify elements.

12

Stellar Fusion

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13Stellar Notes

0.006".
14

Light Travel Time Machine

15

Relativistic Travel

Nearby in the Sky

Other targets within a few degrees — pan your scope a little and keep exploring.

Visibility scores assume a 150 mm Newton at Bortle 4.

NGC 2513
Hard+
Elliptical galaxy
Galaxy mag 13.0 6.9° Cancer
NGC 2395
Easy
Open cluster
Open Cluster mag 8.0 9.0° Gemini
Show on Map

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