Sections

Catalogues

Tools and Links

Galactic Map

Show the direction and distance to this object on the Galactic Map.

Keid

Vulcan,* Omicron² Eridani, 40 Eridani,
Gliese 166, LHS 23

Orange dwarf in Eridanus

Show on Sky Map

Proper Names	Keid, Vulcan
Bayer Designation	Omicron² Eridani
Flamsteed Number	40 Eridani
HR (BSC)	1325
HD	26965
Other Designations	Gliese 166, LHS 23
Constellation	Eridanus
Right Ascension	4h 15m 16s
Declination	-7° 39' 10"
Distance	16.3 light years 5.0 parsecs
Magnitude	Apparent: +4.42 Absolute: +5.92
Spectral Class	K0.5V orange dwarf
Optimum Visibility	December
Planets in this system	Keid b (40 Eridani A b), super Earth (unconfirmed)
Notes	Omicron² Eridani is a triple system, with the primary star (to which the name Keid formally applies) being an orange dwarf. It is orbited at a distance of some 400 AU by a binary pair of companions, one of which is a low-mass red flare star, while the other is a white dwarf (and in fact historically the first white dwarf to be identified).

Imagery provided by Aladin sky atlas

Keid, a variable star near the 'source' of the River Eridanus. Its companion Beid, though it appears close in the sky, is actually more than a hundred light years further away than Keid.

An triple star in the northern parts of Eridanus. It is a near neighbour to the somewhat better-known Ran or Epsilon Eridani, and so is close to Earth's Solar System at just sixteen light years' distance.

* The name 'Vulcan' for this star comes from the lore of the TV series Star Trek, in which it is said to be orbited by the home planet of Mr Spock and his kind. 'Vulcan' is not therefore a traditional name, but it is found in some catalogues, and is therefore included here. There are in fact (as yet unconfirmed) indications of a massive terrestrial planet in orbit around the primary star of this triple system, but its orbit would place it rather too close to the orange star to be realistically habitable.

Indexes

Related Entries

v2.1g