Zeta Indi

Zeta Indi
Location of ζ Indi (circled)
Observation data
Epoch J2000      Equinox J2000
Constellation Indus
Right ascension 20h 49m 28.96257s
Declination −46° 13 36.5771
Apparent magnitude (V) 4.90
Characteristics
Evolutionary stage red giant branch
Spectral type K5III
B−V color index +1.494±0.059
Astrometry
Radial velocity (Rv)−5.20±2.8 km/s
Proper motion (μ) RA: +39.432 mas/yr
Dec.: +26.204 mas/yr
Parallax (π)7.2497±0.1200 mas
Distance450 ± 7 ly
(138 ± 2 pc)
Absolute magnitude (MV)−0.61
Details
Mass4.4 M
Radius39 R
Luminosity635 L
Surface gravity (log g)1.93 cgs
Temperature4,795 K
Other designations
ζ Ind, CD−46°13718, FK5 3661, GC 29008, HD 198048, HIP 102790, HR 7952, SAO 230391
Database references
SIMBADdata

Zeta Indi is a single star in the southern constellation Indus, near the northern constellation border with Microscopium. It is visible to the naked eye as a faint, orange-hued star with an apparent visual magnitude of 4.90. The star is located approximately 450 light years away from the Sun based on parallax. The radial velocity estimate for this object is poorly constrained, but it appears to be moving closer at the rate of around −5 km/s.

This object is an aging giant star with a stellar classification of K5III. With the supply of hydrogen at its core exhausted, the star has expanded off the main sequence and now has 39 times the girth of the Sun. It is radiating 635 times the luminosity of the Sun from its bloated photosphere at an effective temperature of 4,795 K.