Strange star, can anyone identify?

I posted a while back about a star i can see now out the back of my house in the "so you see a bright light " thread, its still there now and i'm suprised no one can identify it, i'm really bad when it comes to astronomy so i'm hoping one of you experts can help me out here.

www.abovetopsecret.com...

every time i see it i think its a UFO, i'm breaking legs here going for the camera.

reply to post by RancidCat


Could it be the amazing star Mira?

It does have the most amazing variations in colour, and I believe it is the only known star leaving a tail of debris behind it as it travels through space.

reply to post by RancidCat


Hmmm, doesn't make any sense. It twinkles, and changes color....

Stars don't change color. Maybe it's dust or something in the atmosphere making it look like different colors. If it twinkles, that rules out a planet.

'fraid you got yourself a toughy.

Try this web site it might be of help. Last month I was out watching the ISS (Space Station) flying over and it was very clear.
www.heavens-above.com...

I'm watching it now, it definitley twinkles and its orange and silver, i will try my hardest to get a photo through my telescope, unfortunatly both my camera and telescope are cheap!

Could be Arcturus...

An easy way to find Arcturus is to follow the arc of the handle of the Big Dipper. By continuing in this path, one can find Spica (α Virginis) as well — leading to the coinage of the popular maxim, "Arc to Arcturus, then speed on to Spica."

Does the description fit?

Its not Mira thats no where near the correct location, Arcturus is to low if the 35 Deg Alt is correct.

I have two stars (and a third that fits the description but isnt in the right place)

These are taken at a lat: 03° 53' 38" W Long: 41° 06' 01" N ( i took N whales and just picked somewhere in that location)
Seginus (ᵧBoo)
Mag: 3.06
Az/Alt 228° 40' 44" / 35° 24' 23"

Alkaid (ᵝUMa)
Mag: 1.87
Az/Alt: 305° 26' 20" / 36° 48' 04"

third is at 285° 45' 52" / 41° 06' 01"

How bright was the star?

Also what constellation?

Bootes and Ursa Major are the two main constellation in the area you pointed out, if you can get a star map or have a look in one of the planetarium program try and see what constellation the star is under or if its even part of the constellation.

Originally posted by Edn
[...]Arcturus is to low if the 35 Deg Alt is correct.
[...]

Really? It looked about right to me. I suggested it because it was the brightest, orange-coloured star in Boötes. I don't think it's Alkaid though, colour isn't right. It could Seginus, though -- RC did mention silver.

If his calculations are correct at the time he suggests Arcturus is only 20° Alt (less actually)

As promised i've managed to take a photo, i've picked the best one with the least amount of camera shake, i've also taken a photo of the next brightest star i can see as a comparison.

As far as i can tell its not part of a constellation, but Ursa Major is up and to the right of it, so i think you could be on to it Edn thanks.

i've zoomed, cropped and increased the brightness and contrast on both to the same level.

this is the odd one which to my eye almost looks like a binary?




and this is the next brightest which is actually Phecda, as you can see there is a huge difference.




my apologise for the poor quality, its hard enough getting the telescope on stars let alone taking a photo through it!

reply to post by RancidCat


Hmmm, curiouser and curiouser. It does have a very weird shape. And the fact that it doesn't act as a star or a planet has me baffled. All I can tell you is to find a stronger telescope.

it looks and sounds like sirius which is a binary star.

more info. very bright and beautiful to look at

After getting a astrology program (Stellarium, its great if your a newbie like me)
and setting it to my location, also going by the descriptions given to me on here, i'm now 99% sure its Acturus. well done and thanks Beachcoma for suggesting that one and thanks everyone else for your suggestions and help.

I must say though i've been looking up at the sky for 30yrs+ now and i've never noticed a star like this one before, just goes to show what can be seen when you actually open your eye's.

Originally posted by RancidCat
well done and thanks Beachcoma for suggesting that one and thanks everyone else for your suggestions and help.

Pleasure is all mine

I recommend the program Celestia if you're really into stargazing. The interface is kind of like Google Earth, but you can go to the other planets and moons in our solar system, as well as visit other star systems. However it's not as easy to to set up for viewing the night sky in a specific area, but once you've gotten the hang of the controls and interface, it's a breeze.

As an educational tool it is without comparison. Plus it's got a whole bunch of add-ons which you can download from here. My favourite add-on is the IRIDIUM satellite constellation add-on. The learning curve for the add-ons is a bit steep, but well worth the effort to learn. The program is truly priceless, and what do you know, it's free and open source too

Go check it out, you won't regret it, I promise you

The clouds are clear and I went our and had a look for myself, its easy to spot and it seams to be Arcturus, I checked both Stellarium and my star maps, though I haven't found anything mentioning why it shines white/orange its definitely that star I think.

heres how I found it, you can check, if its the same star you should be able to follow the big dipper round to the star.