Xi

Its story

Xi Virginis is a white main-sequence star 122 light-years away, still young — about 480 million years old — and spinning rapidly at 130 kilometres per second at its equator. It shines with nearly thirteen solar luminosities at 8,000 kelvin, deep in the body of the Maiden, far from the throne of Spica. Its quick spin flattens it slightly at the poles, an imperfection invisible to the eye yet measurable in its spectrum.