List of stars in Apus facts for kids

The Apus constellation is a small group of stars in the southern sky. Its name means "bird-of-paradise" in Latin. This article lists some of the most interesting and brightest stars you can find in Apus.

When we talk about stars, we often mention their brightness and how far away they are.

• Apparent Magnitude (vis. mag.) tells us how bright a star looks from Earth. A smaller number means the star looks brighter. For example, a star with a magnitude of 1 is much brighter than a star with a magnitude of 5.
• Absolute Magnitude (abs. mag.) tells us how bright a star really is, if all stars were the same distance from us. This helps us compare their true brightness.
• Distance is measured in light-years. One light-year is how far light travels in one year, which is a very, very long way!

Brightest Stars in Apus

The stars in Apus are not super bright, but some are still quite noticeable. Here are a few of the most prominent ones:

Alpha Apodis

Alpha Apodis (α Aps) is the brightest star in the Apus constellation.

• It looks quite bright from Earth, with an apparent magnitude of 3.83.
• This star is a giant star, much bigger than our Sun. Its color is orange, which means it's a K-type star.
• Alpha Apodis is about 411 light-years away from us.

Gamma Apodis

Gamma Apodis (γ Aps) is the second brightest star in Apus.

• It has an apparent magnitude of 3.86, making it almost as bright as Alpha Apodis.
• Gamma Apodis is also a giant star, but it's a K0IV type, which means it's a yellowish-orange subgiant.
• It is closer to Earth than Alpha Apodis, at about 159 light-years away.

Beta Apodis

Beta Apodis (β Aps) is the third brightest star.

• It has an apparent magnitude of 4.23.
• This star is a K0III type, meaning it's a yellowish-orange giant star.
• Beta Apodis is a double star, which means it's actually two stars orbiting each other, but they look like one from Earth.
• It is about 158 light-years from us.

Stars with Special Features

Some stars in Apus have unique characteristics, like being variable or having planets.

Delta Apodis (Double Star)

Delta Apodis is interesting because it's a visual double star. This means it looks like two stars close together in the sky.

• Delta¹ Apodis (δ¹ Aps) is the brighter of the two, with an apparent magnitude of 4.68. It's a red giant star (M4-M5III type). It is also a semiregular variable star, meaning its brightness changes over time. It's about 765 light-years away.
• Delta² Apodis (δ² Aps) is fainter, with an apparent magnitude of 5.27. It's an orange giant star (K3III type). It is about 663 light-years away.

Epsilon Apodis (Variable Star)

Epsilon Apodis (ε Aps) is a B4V type star, which means it's a hot, blue-white star.

• It has an apparent magnitude of 5.06.
• This star is a γ Cas variable, meaning its brightness changes because it spins very fast and throws off gas from its equator.
• It is located about 551 light-years from Earth.

Theta Apodis (Semiregular Variable)

Theta Apodis (θ Aps) is a red giant star (M6.5III type).

• Its apparent magnitude is 5.69.
• It is a semiregular variable star, which means its brightness changes in a somewhat predictable way. Its brightness can vary quite a lot, from 4.65 to 6.20.
• It is about 328 light-years away.

Stars with Planets

Some stars in Apus are known to have planets orbiting them, just like our Sun has Earth!

• HD 134606 is a star similar to our Sun (G6IV type). It has an apparent magnitude of 6.85. This star is special because it has three known planets orbiting it: b, c, and d. It is about 86 light-years away.
• HD 137388, also known as Karaka, is a K0/K1V type star, similar to our Sun. It has an apparent magnitude of 8.71. It has one known planet, b, orbiting it. This star is about 124 light-years away.

Other Notable Stars

• R Apodis (R Aps) is an orange giant star (K4III type) about 428 light-years away. Even though it has an 'R' designation, which often means it's a variable star, it's actually not variable!
• Iota Apodis (ι Aps) is a binary star, meaning it's two stars orbiting each other. It's a blue-white star (B8/B9Vn...) about 1144 light-years away.
• Kappa Apodis (κ Aps) is another interesting system.
  • Kappa¹ Apodis (κ¹ Aps) is a double star and a γ Cas variable, similar to Epsilon Apodis. It's a hot, blue-white star (B1npe) about 1200 light-years away.
  • Kappa² Apodis (κ² Aps) is a triple star system, meaning it has three stars! It's a blue-white star (B8IVe) about 734 light-years away.
• S Apodis (S Aps) is a very distant star, about 4900 light-years away. It's a carbon star (C+) and an R CrB variable. These stars are unusual because they suddenly get much fainter due to dust clouds forming around them.
• Z Apodis (Z Aps) is an RV Tau variable. These are yellow supergiant stars that show changes in brightness with two different patterns.

See also

In Spanish: Anexo:Estrellas de Apus para niños

• Lists of stars by constellation