Kappa Ophiuchi [SEP] constellation
Kappa Ophiuchi
Kappa Ophiuchi (κ Oph, κ Ophiuchi) is a star in the equatorial constellation Ophiuchus. It is a suspected variable star with an average apparent visual magnitude of 3.20, making it visible to the naked eye and one of the brighter members of this constellation. Based upon parallax measurements made during the Hipparcos mission, it is situated at a distance of around from Earth. The overall brightness of the star is diminished by 0.11 magnitudes due to extinction from intervening matter along the line of sight.
The spectrum
, it is radiating 46 times the luminosity of the Sun from its outer atmosphere at an effective temperature of 4,529 K. This is cooler than the Sun's surface and gives Kappa Ophiuchi the orange-hued glow of a K-type star.
Although designated as a variable star, observations with the Hipparcos satellite showed a variation of no more than 0.02 in magnitude. In designating this as a suspected variable star, it is possible that Kappa Ophiuchi was mistaken for Chi Ophiuchi, which is a variable star. Kappa Ophiuchi