Deneb Kaitos: Whale’s tail
Deneb Kaitos is the brightest star within the constellation Cetus the Whale (or Sea-Monster). In star names, the phrase deneb often means tail. And so it’s with this star. It marks the tail of Cetus. Deneb Kaitos can be identified by two alternate names, Beta Ceti and Diphda. It shines at magnitude 2, making it about as shiny as Polaris, the North Star. Neither Polaris nor Deneb Kaitos shines brightly sufficient to be tremendous noticeable. However each are effectively inside the restrict of visibility to the unaided eye. Primarily based on parallax measurements, Deneb Kaitos lies at an estimated distance of 96 light-years from Earth.
Deneb Kaitos reaches its highest within the sky on October and November evenings yearly. For these of us within the Northern Hemisphere, it seems within the southern sky. It’s nearer to overhead as seen from Earth’s Southern Hemisphere.
The celebs return to the identical place within the sky about two hours earlier with every passing month (or 4 minutes earlier with every passing day). In center January, search for Deneb Kaitos to succeed in its excessive level round 7 p.m. native time. On February evenings, this star drifts into the southwest sky, and disappears from the night sky by March.
Deneb Kaitos has virtually thrice the sun’s mass. Its diameter is a few 17 occasions higher than our sun’s. Take a look at this star with binoculars, and observe its orange complexion. The orange colour signifies a fairly low floor temperature, and likewise lets us know that this star is getting into into the autumn of its years.
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The Whale doesn’t look very whale-like
Finder charts for finding Deneb Kaitos
Mira is one other well-known star in Cetus
By the way in which, don’t confuse Deneb Kaitos with a well-known variable star additionally in Cetus. The variable star is known as Mira the Wonderful. Mira usually stays a lot too faint to see with the unaided eye. However periodically Mira brightens sufficient to be seen. Its typical magnitude when brightest is about magnitude 3.5 (fainter than Deneb Kaitos). Mira’s most up-to-date most brightness was mid-June 2023. And through its subsequent expected maximum brightness in mid-Could 2024, it’ll be too near the sun to see.
Backside line: Deneb Kaitos, aka Beta Ceti, is the brightest star in Cetus the Whale, a constellation of in any other case faint stars.
