V Puppis (V Pup) is a

star system A star system or stellar system is a small number of stars that orbit each other, bound by gravity, gravitational attraction. It may sometimes be used to refer to a single star. A large group of stars bound by gravitation is generally calle ...

in the

constellation A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of visible stars forms Asterism (astronomy), a perceived pattern or outline, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object. The first constellati ...

Puppis. Its

apparent magnitude Apparent magnitude () is a measure of the Irradiance, brightness of a star, astronomical object or other celestial objects like artificial satellites. Its value depends on its intrinsic luminosity, its distance, and any extinction (astronomy), ...

is 4.41. There is a

binary star A binary star or binary star system is a system of two stars that are gravitationally bound to and in orbit around each other. Binary stars in the night sky that are seen as a single object to the naked eye are often resolved as separate stars us ...

system at the center with a B1

dwarf Dwarf, dwarfs or dwarves may refer to: Common uses *Dwarf (folklore), a supernatural being from Germanic folklore * Dwarf, a human or animal with dwarfism Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Dwarf (''Dungeons & Dragons''), a sh ...

orbiting a B3

subgiant A subgiant is a star that is brighter than a normal main-sequence star of the same spectral class, but not as bright as giant stars. The term subgiant is applied both to a particular spectral luminosity class and to a stage in the evolution ...

star. They have an orbital period of 1.45 days and a distance of only 15 solar radii apart. However, the system moves back and forth, indicating that there is a massive object orbiting them with a period around 5.47 years. Based on the mass of the object, its lack of a visible spectrum, and circumstellar matter in the system with many heavy elements (as would be produced by a past supernova in the system), it is probably a

black hole A black hole is a massive, compact astronomical object so dense that its gravity prevents anything from escaping, even light. Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity predicts that a sufficiently compact mass will form a black hole. Th ...

. However, a follow-up study could not confirm this object, but found signs that there may be a third object which is fainter than the other components. VPupLightCurve

In addition to the main system, more distant components have been reported: B, at magnitude 11.5 and separation 6.2", C, at magnitude 13.2 and separation 18.9", D, at magnitude 9.88 and separation 39", and E, at magnitude 13 and separation from D of 10.4".Vizier catalog entry
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:V Puppis Puppis B-type main-sequence stars B-type subgiants Beta Lyrae variables CD-48 3349 038957 3129 065818 Puppis, V Ap stars