HD 56096
Encyclopedia
HD 56096 is a giant star
that is also known as L² Puppis because it is located in the constellation
of Puppis
. It is a semi-regular pulsating star that varies in magnitude from 2.60 down to 6.00 with a period of 140.83 days. The variation in light may be caused by a combination of radial pulsations in the star's atmosphere and by dimming from circumstellar dust. This is most likely an asymptotic giant branch
star that has passed through the main sequence
and is evolving to become a white dwarf
. It is shedding mass at the rate of about −9 solar mass
es per year.
It has been determined that HD 56096 has a line-of-sight companion star of uncertain distance.
Giant star
A giant star is a star with substantially larger radius and luminosity than a main sequence star of the same surface temperature. Typically, giant stars have radii between 10 and 100 solar radii and luminosities between 10 and 1,000 times that of the Sun. Stars still more luminous than giants are...
that is also known as L² Puppis because it is located in the constellation
Constellation
In modern astronomy, a constellation is an internationally defined area of the celestial sphere. These areas are grouped around asterisms, patterns formed by prominent stars within apparent proximity to one another on Earth's night sky....
of Puppis
Puppis
Puppis is a constellation in the southern sky. Its name is the Latin word for the poop deck of a ship, and Puppis represents the deck of the ship and its deckhouses...
. It is a semi-regular pulsating star that varies in magnitude from 2.60 down to 6.00 with a period of 140.83 days. The variation in light may be caused by a combination of radial pulsations in the star's atmosphere and by dimming from circumstellar dust. This is most likely an asymptotic giant branch
Asymptotic Giant Branch
The asymptotic giant branch is the region of the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram populated by evolving low to medium-mass stars. This is a period of stellar evolution undertaken by all low to intermediate mass stars late in their lives....
star that has passed through the main sequence
Main sequence
The main sequence is a continuous and distinctive band of stars that appears on plots of stellar color versus brightness. These color-magnitude plots are known as Hertzsprung–Russell diagrams after their co-developers, Ejnar Hertzsprung and Henry Norris Russell...
and is evolving to become a white dwarf
White dwarf
A white dwarf, also called a degenerate dwarf, is a small star composed mostly of electron-degenerate matter. They are very dense; a white dwarf's mass is comparable to that of the Sun and its volume is comparable to that of the Earth. Its faint luminosity comes from the emission of stored...
. It is shedding mass at the rate of about −9 solar mass
Solar mass
The solar mass , , is a standard unit of mass in astronomy, used to indicate the masses of other stars and galaxies...
es per year.
It has been determined that HD 56096 has a line-of-sight companion star of uncertain distance.