hip-72296

Its story

Centaurus, the legendary celestial centaur, hosts about 501 light years away an orange K-type star. Its light departed around 1525, during the reign of Charles V, when Spanish conquistadors were consolidating their presence in the New World. Cooler than the Sun, its amber tone betrays a more adult stage of stellar life, when the outer layers begin to expand. The great southern constellation, also home to Alpha Centauri, lends it a sky loaded with bright jewels, in which it occupies a discreet but dignified place.