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Rasalgethi

A Dictionary of Astronomy | 1997 | 601 words | Copyright

Rasalgethi The star Alpha Herculis, an M5 supergiant or bright giant that is one of the largest stars known, with an estimated diameter some 400 times the Sun's. It is a semiregular variable that ranges between magnitudes 2.7 and 4.0 with a period of 100 days or so, although there are also longer-period variations lasting about 6 years. It is a binary, with a companion of magnitude 5.4 that appears greenish by contrast with the orange primary; this star is itself a spectroscopic binary. The orbital period of the visual pair is estimated at around 3600 years. Rasalgethi lies about 400 l.y. away.

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