Star Aldebaran: characteristics, luminosity, interesting facts

The star Aldebaran is located in the constellation of Taurus and is the brightest in the entire Zodiac. It has been known for over three millennia under various names: “Lamparus” (“beacon”) among the Greeks, “Royal Star” among the Persians, “Heart of the Bull” among the ancient Chinese, and “Ox Driver” among the Bulgars. The modern name “Aldebaran” translates from Arabic as “the follower.”

Best observed with the naked eye in the night sky from November to January, during the peak period of the Taurus constellation rising above the horizon.

Key Characteristics:

Astronomers classify Aldebaran as an “orange-hued normal giant,” a variable star with a small amplitude of brightness.

• Age: Approximately 6.6 billion years.
• Distance from Earth: 20 parsecs or 65 light-years (precise data obtained in 1989 thanks to the Hipparcos satellite telescope, which orbited for 37 months).
• Mass: Estimated to be between 1.13 and 2.5 times the mass of the Sun.
• Radius: Approximately 44 times that of the Sun.
• Surface temperature: Around 3600 degrees Celsius.
• Metallicity: 70%.
• Rotation speed: 4.3 km/sec.
• Proper motion speed: 58.39 km/sec. Measurements indicate Aldebaran is moving away from the Solar System.
• Radial velocity: 53.8 km/sec.
• Luminosity: According to data from the European Hipparcos telescope, Aldebaran is 439 times brighter than the Sun, but due to its great distance and weak visibility, it ranks only 14th among celestial objects in terms of apparent magnitude.

The star is powered by helium burning (all the hydrogen fuel on the star has already been spent). It is believed that in a few million years, Aldebaran’s luminosity will surpass that of the Sun by 800 times.

Interesting Facts about Aldebaran:

1. Visually forms an English letter “V” with four stars from the nearest to Earth Pleiades cluster. Under favorable viewing conditions, the letter is clearly visible with binoculars and even with the naked eye.
2. Once a year (June 1), the Sun and Aldebaran appear to merge into a single point.
   Aldebaran occasionally undergoes lunar occultations (the last recorded occurrence during daylight hours was in August 2017).
3. The small spacecraft “Pioneer 10,” launched towards Aldebaran in the 1970s, is still within the confines of the Solar System. The last communication session with it was over 10 years ago. Onboard is a message containing information about the Solar System in general and Earth in particular (as it is presumed that there is an extraterrestrial civilization on Aldebaran). At its current speed, Pioneer 10 could reach its destination in 2 million years.
4. It is interesting to contemplate whether the individuals who thoughtlessly send cosmic “gifts” have considered what we would do if this message, for example, is intercepted by a highly advanced civilization and comes to Earth with hostile intentions? Your nuclear weapons would be like a mosquito’s squeak to them.
5. Since 1997, it has been hypothesized that a gas giant (a brown dwarf) orbits the star with a mass exceeding eleven times that of Jupiter, influencing the orbits of Pollux and Arcturus.
6. Aldebaran is part of the seasonal asterism Winter Circle, best visible around the equatorial region.
   Frequently referenced in works of science fiction and adapted into artistic films (including animations), such as Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings”.
7. In ancient Babylon, the beginning of the new year was marked by the position of Aldebaran in the sky.
8. The influence of the star on Earth’s processes, according to astrologers, is comparable to that of Jupiter. In reality (confirmed by meteorologists), the star’s conjunction with the Sun typically heralds windy weather accompanied by rain and thunderstorms, while its conjunction with Mars predicts hurricanes and summer heat.
9. In Persian astrology (3000 years ago), Aldebaran was considered one of the four Guardians of the sky, alongside Regulus, Antares, and Fomalhaut, guarding the eastern celestial gates.
10. The prospect of the end of the star’s life cycle in the next 2 billion years is its transformation into a white dwarf, when all the helium on the star will be exhausted.