Page 1 of 1

Eta Carina, the nebula, the star....

Posted: 08.11.2003, 16:41
by ElPelado
I am very confused by now...
1) In celestia there is no star called "eta car" bue there is a star called "e vel", is this the same star???
2) I installed the Selden's bilboard of the Carin nebula, but its not near the star "e vel", and this makes me think that "eta car" its not "e vel".
3) Then I installed the Homunculus Nebula(the nebula around "eta car") by Rass, and its possition in the sky is near the Carina nebula, but again not near "e vel".
4) I searched in Google for "eta carina" and i got the this page: http://www.seds.org/billa/twn/n3372x.html There is a difference between the cordinates from that page and teh cordinates of Rass' star.
5)I also have Starry nigh and there, the "eta car" is (i think) where the "e vel" is in celestia.

SO WHO IS RIGHT???? CELESTIA, THE PAGE, RASS or STARRY NIGHT???? CAN SOMEONE EXPLAIN ME PLEASE???

Re: Eta Carina, the nebula, the star....

Posted: 08.11.2003, 18:23
by selden
ElPelado wrote:I am very confused by now...
1) In celestia there is no star called "eta car" bue there is a star called "e vel", is this the same star???
No. Carina and Vela are different constellations. Eta Car is a highly variable star. Hipparcos did not try to measure its position, so it is not included in Celestia.
2) I installed the Selden's bilboard of the Carin nebula, but its not near the star "e vel", and this makes me think that "eta car" its not "e vel".
That's right. It is not.
3) Then I installed the Homunculus Nebula(the nebula around "eta car") by Rass, and its possition in the sky is near the Carina nebula, but again not near "e vel".
Correct
4) I searched in Google for "eta carina" and i got the this page: http://www.seds.org/billa/twn/n3372x.html There is a difference between the cordinates from that page and teh cordinates of Rass' star.
But only a tiny one: 1/100 of a degree. SEDS only specifies its values to the nearest minute of arc, which is larger than that.
5)I also have Starry nigh and there, the "eta car" is (i think) where the "e vel" is in celestia.

SO WHO IS RIGHT???? CELESTIA, THE PAGE, RASS or STARRY NIGHT???? CAN SOMEONE EXPLAIN ME PLEASE???


I don't have Starry Night, so I can't comment on that.

Simbad shows Eta Car to be HD 93308 at
RA= 10h 45m 03.591s, Dec= -59 deg 41' 04.26"

Simbad shows * e Vel to be HD 73634 at
RA= 08h 37m 38.6331s, Dec= -42 deg 59' 20.690"

The two stars are a long way apart.

Posted: 08.11.2003, 18:36
by lostfisherman
Eta Carina is missing from Celestia. The goto command for HR 4210 and HD 93308 (other names for Eta Car) don't show anything either. I know that the star is very distant, it might be because of that.

There is an extended star catalogue to download somewhere, you could try that.

Posted: 08.11.2003, 21:07
by granthutchison
Eta Carinae doesn't appear in Celestia because it isn't in the Hipparcos catalogue, from which Celestia's star database is derived.

Grant

Posted: 08.11.2003, 21:41
by ElPelado
Thanks selden. I realized it later, now I understand. There is a problem with your carina nebula and the ngc nebular near it: you cant see both, its the same problem that happens with very near meshes...


lostfisherman: go to http://www.shatters.net/~rassilon and download the eta carina star with nebula.
Or if you want only the star here you have the code:

Code: Select all

# Eta Carinae
300003 "ETA CAR"{
        RA 161.265 # 15 deg = 1h [24h = 360 deg or 1 full circle!]
        Dec -59.68333
        Distance 8550
        SpectralType "B3Ia"
        AppMag -1
}

Save it as a *.stc file.

Posted: 11.11.2003, 08:03
by Tech Sgt. Chen
Darn, you guys are fast!
Oh well...

ElPelado,
Hope this helps too.

Eta Carina is located at Right Ascension 10h45m04s, Declination: -59d41m03s9h55m51s. The constellation is named for the keel of the giant ship, Argo Navis, sailed by Jason and his Argonauts in search of the Golden Fleece. Credit: Chandra Science Center.
http://science.nasa.gov/newhome/headlines/ast08oct99_1.htm

Image