Tau Ceti

light-years
Proper names: Tau Ceti, 52 Ceti
Catalog numbers:
     Gliese (Gl) 71, Henry Draper (HD) 10700, Bonner Durchmusterung (BD) -16°295 , Luyten Half-Second (LHS) 146 , Hipparcos Input Catalog (HIC) 8102, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) 147986, Fifth Fundamental Catalogue (FK5) 59, Hoffleit Bright Star (HR) 509
Heavy element abundance: 37% of Sol
Standard error in heavy element abundance: 13%
Source for heavy element abundance: Strobel [Fe/H] Determinations
Arity: singular
Right Ascension and Declination: 1h44m4.091s, -15°56'14.89" (epoch 2000.0)
Distance from Sol: 11.90 light-years (3.647 parsecs)
Standard error in distance: 0.2909%
Source for distance: Hipparcos
Celestial (X,Y,Z) coordinates in ly: 10.28, 5.018, -3.267
Galactic (X,Y,Z) coordinates in ly: -3.490, 0.373, -11.37
Proper motion: 1.924 arcsec/yr (296.4° from north)
Radial Velocity: -17 km/sec
Source for proper motion and radial velocity: Gliese
Galactic (U,V,W) velocity components in km/s: 18.80, 29.55, 12.99

What do all these fields mean?


Spectral class: G8p
Luminosity Class: V
Apparent visual magnitude: +3.50
Absolute visual magnitude: +5.69
Visual luminosity: 0.463 x Sol
Color indices: B-V= +0.72
Mass: 0.81 x Sol
Diameter: 0.823 x Sol
Source for diameter: Apparent Diameters and Absolute Radii of Stars (Fracassini+ 1988)
Comfort Zone (visual): 0.681 A.U.s
Orbital period in CZ: 227.931 days
Tidal index in CZ: 2.56786
Angular size of star in sky in CZ: 0.644689 degrees

light-years
but not more than light-years away
Data for this star system were most recently updated on 4-April-2001.