Miaplacidus is a white star in Carina, the brightest of the Keel after Canopus, its name an odd blend of Arabic and Latin usually read as calm waters.
At a glance
| type | white star (class A) |
|---|---|
| distance from the Sun | 113 light-years (34.7 pc) |
| its light left it | 113 years ago |
| luminosity | 259 × the Sun |
| radius | 6.63 × the Sun |
| surface temperature | 8,990 K |
| constellation | Carina (Keel) |
Read off the piece’s own catalogue, the same values it draws with.
About Miaplacidus
The facts describe a hot white star, larger than the Sun and far more luminous, near the end of the hydrogen-burning stage of its life.
The name is generally explained as a mix of the Arabic for waters and the Latin placidus, calm. The star lies far to the south, close enough to the south celestial pole that from much of the southern hemisphere it never sets.
What you see in the piece
In the piece Miaplacidus sits much nearer the Sun than Canopus; fly out and the Keel’s two brightest stars part company in depth.
Questions
What does Miaplacidus mean?
It is usually explained as a hybrid of an Arabic word for waters and the Latin placidus, calm: calm waters.