Luyten 726-8 A, also called BL Ceti, is one of a pair of tiny red dwarfs in Cetus; its partner, UV Ceti, gave its name to the whole class of flare stars.
At a glance
| type | red dwarf (class M) |
|---|---|
| distance from the Sun | 8.73 light-years (2.68 pc) |
| its light left it | 8.73 years ago |
| luminosity | 0.00006 × the Sun |
| radius | 0.14 × the Sun |
| surface temperature | 2,670 K |
Read off the piece’s own catalogue, the same values it draws with.
About Luyten 726-8 A
This is a pair of very small, very cool red dwarfs orbiting each other closely. The A star, Luyten 726-8 A, is known as BL Ceti and its companion, Luyten 726-8 B, as UV Ceti. Willem Luyten found the pair while searching for stars with large motions across the sky, the mark of a star that is close.
Both stars flare. UV Ceti in particular can brighten many times over in minutes, and its outbursts were so dramatic that flare stars in general are known as UV Ceti variables. BL Ceti flares too, though less spectacularly. Neither is visible to the naked eye.
What you see in the piece
Fly to it and you find a dim, deep-red star, among the faintest of the neighbours. In HUMAN EYE nothing shows in this part of Cetus.
Questions
What is UV Ceti?
UV Ceti is the companion of Luyten 726-8 A, the flare star that gave its name to the whole class; the pair lies 8.73 light-years (2.68 pc) from the Sun.
Is BL Ceti visible to the naked eye?
No. Luyten 726-8 A is a red dwarf (class M) with a luminosity of 0.00006 × the Sun.