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AG Carinae

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description AG Carinae Overview

AG Carinae is a luminous blue variable star in the southern constellation Carina, located thousands of light-years from Earth. It is an evolved, highly luminous massive star whose brightness and spectrum change as it undergoes unstable episodes of mass loss. The surrounding nebula consists of material expelled during earlier eruptions, allowing astronomers to study how very massive stars shed matter before reaching the final stages of stellar evolution.

help AG Carinae FAQ

What type of star is AG Carinae?

AG Carinae is a luminous blue variable, a rare and unstable phase experienced by some extremely massive stars. NASA estimates that it shines with the brilliance of roughly one million Suns.

How did the nebula around AG Carinae form?

The nebula consists of gas and dust expelled during one or more enormous stellar eruptions. NASA estimates that the surrounding shell is about five light-years wide and was produced around 10,000 years ago.

Is AG Carinae the same object as Eta Carinae?

No. AG Carinae and Eta Carinae are separate luminous blue variables in the constellation Carina. Eta Carinae is famous for its nineteenth-century Great Eruption and the Homunculus Nebula, while AG Carinae has its own approximately five-light-year shell.

Can AG Carinae be seen without a telescope?

AG Carinae is not normally a naked-eye object despite its immense intrinsic luminosity. It lies thousands of light-years away and is heavily affected by interstellar dust, so observing it generally requires a telescope.

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