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Eta Reticuli — Star in Reticulum

Magnitude 5.2m Star Reticulum (Ret) Visible
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1Physical Properties

Magnitude 5.24
Spectral Type G8III giant
Star Color Orange (B-V 0.96)
Distance 204 ly

2Position & Identifiers

RA 04h 21m 53.3s
Dec -63° 23' 11.0"
Constellation Reticulum (Ret)
HR 1395
HIP 20384
HD 28093
SAO 249009
Bayer Eta
SIMBAD

3How easy to spot?

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Equipment Bortle 3 Bortle 4 Bortle 5
Naked eye Medium Hard+ Hard
50mm finder Easy Easy Easy
150mm scope Easy Easy Easy
Easy Medium Hard Very hard Impossible

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

4Visibility

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Best season Oct – Dec (peak: Nov)

5Survey Image

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6

Size Comparison

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7

Compare Stars

8

Spectral Classification

9

Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram

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Read: The Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram — Reading Stars Like a Map
10

Stellar Lifecycle

11

Blackbody Spectrum

12

Stellar Absorption Spectrum

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

13

Stellar Fusion

Discover

14Stellar Notes

Zeta Her group.
15

Light Travel Time Machine

16

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.

Theta Ret
Easy
Easy double, sep 4.1″
Double Star mag 5.87 0.5° Reticulum
NGC 1534
Hard
Bright spiral galaxy
Galaxy mag 12.92 1.6° Reticulum
R Dor
Easy
Semi-regular variable, range 4.8–6.6
Variable Star mag 5.40 2.1° Dorado
Gamma Ret
Easy
Cool red giant
Star mag 4.51 2.7° Reticulum
Delta Ret
Easy
Cool red giant
Star mag 4.56 3.3° Reticulum
NGC 1787
Medium+
Open cluster
Open Cluster mag 10.92 4.6° Dorado
Show on Map

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