LkCa 15

LkCa 15

LkCa 15 protoplanetary disk
Observation data
Epoch J2000.0      Equinox J2000.0
Constellation Taurus
Right ascension 04h 39m 17.796s
Declination +22° 21′ 03.48″
Apparent magnitude (V) +11.91
Characteristics
Spectral type K5V
Variable type T Tauri
Astrometry
Proper motion (μ) RA: 10.572 mas/yr
Dec.: -17.527 mas/yr
Parallax (π)6.3619±0.0264 mas
Distance513 ± 2 ly
(157.2 ± 0.7 pc)
Details
Mass0.97 ± 0.03 M
Radius1.2 R
Luminosity1.22 L
Temperature4730 K
AgeMyr
Other designations
V1079 Tau, GSC 01278-00193, TYC 1278-193-1, 2MASS J04391779+2221034
Database references
SIMBADdata

LkCa 15 is a T Tauri star in the Taurus Molecular Cloud. These types of stars are relatively young pre-main-sequence stars that show irregular variations in brightness. It has a mass that is about 97% of the Sun, an effective temperature of 4370 K, and is slightly cooler than the Sun. Its apparent magnitude is 11.91, meaning it is not visible to the naked eye.

In 1993, Jérôme Bouvier et al. announced that LkCa 15 is a variable star. It was given its variable star designation, V1079 Tauri, in 1995.