HD 53143 is a

star A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...

in the Carina

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 origins of the e ...

, located about from the Earth. With an apparent visual magnitude of 6.80, this star is a challenge to view with the naked eye even under ideal viewing conditions. Using the technique of

gyrochronology Gyrochronology is a method for estimating the age of a low-mass (cool) Main sequence, main sequence star (spectral class F8 V or later) from its stellar rotation, rotation period. The term is derived from the Greek language, Greek words ''gyros, chr ...

, which measures the age of a low-mass star based on its rotation, HD 53143 is about old. Depending on the source, the

stellar classification In astronomy, stellar classification is the classification of stars based on their stellar spectrum, spectral characteristics. Electromagnetic radiation from the star is analyzed by splitting it with a Prism (optics), prism or diffraction grati ...

for this star is G9 V or K1V, placing it near the borderline between G-type and K-type main sequence stars. In either case, it is generating energy through the thermonuclear fusion of hydrogen at its core. This star is smaller than the Sun, with about 85% of the Sun's radius. It is emitting only 70% of the Sun's luminosity. The

effective temperature The effective temperature of a body such as a star or planet is the temperature of a black body that would emit the same total amount of electromagnetic radiation. Effective temperature is often used as an estimate of a body's surface temperature ...

of the star's outer envelope is cooler than the Sun at 5,224 K, giving it a golden-orange hue.

Debris disk

Based upon an excess of infrared emission, a circumstellar debris disk has been found in this system. This disk is inclined at an angle of about 40–50° to the line of sight from the Earth and it has an estimated mass of more than . (For comparison, the mass of the Moon is 7.3477 × 10²² kg.) This is one of the oldest known debris disk systems and hence may be replenished through the collision of larger bodies. The observed inner edge of the disk is at a distance of 55 Astronomical Units (AU) from the host star, while it stretches out to twice that distance, or 110 AU. This debris disk may extend outside this range, as the measurements are limited by the sensitivity of the instruments. The dust appears evenly distributed with no indication of clumping. The eccentricity of the ring is also one of the highest known, at 0.21.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:HD 53143 Carina (constellation) G-type main-sequence stars K-type main-sequence stars 053143 Circumstellar disks Durchmusterung objects 0260 003690