# BV Centauri

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Star in the constellation Centaurus

BV Centauri A near infrared (I band) light curve for BV Centauri from ASAS data, adapted from Kiraga (2012)[1] Observation data Epoch J2000 Equinox J2000 Constellation Centaurus Right ascension 13h 31m 19.485s[2] Declination −54° 58′ 33.52″[2] Apparent magnitude (V) 10.7 to 14.0[3] Characteristics Spectral type G5-G8IV-V (secondary)[4] U−B color index -0.22[4] B−V color index 0.77[4] Variable type SS Cyg[3] Astrometry Radial velocity (Rv) -22.3[5] km/s Proper motion (μ) RA: -25.8[2] mas/yr Dec.: -1.4[2] mas/yr Parallax (π) 2.81±0.38 mas[6] Distance approx. 1,200 ly (approx. 360 pc) Absolute magnitude (MV) +3.0 - +5.8[6] Orbit Period (P) 0.611±0.002 days[5] Semi-major axis (a) 2.53×1011 cm (0.017 au)[7] Inclination (i) 53±4,[5] 62±5[7]° Semi-amplitude (K1) (primary) 128±3[7] km/s Semi-amplitude (K2) (secondary) 137.3±0.3[5] km/s Details Primary (white dwarf) Mass 1.18+0.28 −0.16[5] M☉ Surface gravity (log g) 8.3[8] cgs Temperature 40000 ± 1000[8] K Rotational velocity (v sin i) 500 ± 100[8] km/s Secondary Mass 1.05+0.23 −0.14[5] M☉ Radius 1.41 ± 0.04[7] R☉ Surface gravity (log g) 3.5[5] cgs Temperature 5250[5] K Other designations BV Centauri, 2MASS J13311951-5458335, AAVSO 1325-54[9] Database references SIMBAD data

**BV Centauri** is a [cataclysmic variable](/source/Cataclysmic_variable) [binary star](/source/Binary_star) in the [constellation](/source/Constellation) [Centaurus](/source/Centaurus). It is a [dwarf nova](/source/Dwarf_nova), and undergoes rapid increases in brightness that are recurrent with a mean period of 150 days. This period seems to have increased in the last few decades.[10] During quiescence, its visual [apparent magnitude](/source/Apparent_magnitude) is about 13, with variations of a few tenths of magnitude over an orbit due to differences in the star's visible surface area ([ellipsoidal variability](/source/Ellipsoidal_variable)),[7] brightening to a maximum magnitude of 10.7 during outbursts.[3] From its luminosity, it is estimated that the system is about 500 parsecs (1,600 ly) away from Earth.[4][7] A [Gaia](/source/Gaia_(spacecraft)) parallax of 2.81 [mas](/source/Arc-second) has been measured, corresponding to about 360 pc.[6] William Francis Herschel Waterfield discovered that the star is a [variable star](/source/Variable_star), in 1929.[11]

Cataclysmic variables are short-period binary systems in which a [white dwarf](/source/White_dwarf) primary [accretes](/source/Accretion_(astrophysics)) matter from a secondary star. For BV Centauri, the white dwarf and its companion have estimated masses of 1.18 and 1.05 times the [mass of the Sun](/source/Solar_mass) respectively,[5] although alternate, conflicting mass measurements were reported too.[12] The secondary is a conventional star with a [spectral type](/source/Stellar_classification) of G5-G8IV-V and it is assumed to contribute to half of the visual luminosity of the system. It is thought to have a radius of 1.4 *R*☉ and so to be significantly evolved away from the [zero age main sequence](/source/Zero_age_main_sequence).[4][7] The reconstruction of its surface by [Doppler imaging](/source/Doppler_imaging) revealed it to be a highly magnetically active star, with about 25% of its surface covered in [starspots](/source/Starspot) which are much more abundant on the hemisphere facing the white dwarf. Furthermore, a [prominence](/source/Solar_prominence) was detected above the secondary star's surface, also in the side facing the white dwarf.[5] The white dwarf primary can be observed clearly at [ultraviolet](/source/Ultraviolet) wavelengths where it is the strongest source. Any [accretion disk](/source/Accretion_disk) in the system appears relatively faint.[8]

The system has a [period](/source/Orbital_period) of 0.611179 days (16.7 hours), one of the longest periods for a dwarf nova, and is [inclined](/source/Inclination) by 53 ± 4° in relation to the plane of the sky.[5]

It has been noted that BV Centauri's [light curve](/source/Light_curve) during outbursts has anomalous behavior for a dwarf nova, with a long interval of up to 15 days before reaching peak brightness and no plateau at maximum brightness, and it has been compared to the [classic nova](/source/Nova) [GK Persei](/source/GK_Persei). Based on this, it has been proposed that BV Centauri could have generated an unobserved nova outburst in the 19th century, which was missed by the observers at the time.[10][13]

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Kiraga_1-0)** Kiraga, M. (March 2012). ["ASAS Photometry of ROSAT Sources. I. Periodic Variable Stars Coincident with Bright Sources from the ROSAT All Sky Survey"](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2012AcA....62...67K). *Acta Astronomica*. **62** (1): 67–95. [arXiv](/source/ArXiv_(identifier)):[1204.3825](https://arxiv.org/abs/1204.3825). [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[2012AcA....62...67K](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2012AcA....62...67K). Retrieved 28 November 2021.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-tycho2_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-tycho2_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-tycho2_2-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-tycho2_2-3) Høg, E; Fabricius, C; Makarov, V. V; Urban, S; Corbin, T; Wycoff, G; Bastian, U; Schwekendiek, P; Wicenec, A (2000). "The Tycho-2 catalogue of the 2.5 million brightest stars". *Astronomy and Astrophysics*. **355**: L27. [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[2000A&A...355L..27H](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2000A&A...355L..27H).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-GCVS_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-GCVS_3-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-GCVS_3-2) Samus, N. N; Durlevich, O. V; et al. (January 2009). "VizieR Online Data Catalog: General Catalogue of Variable Stars (Samus+ 2007-2013)". *VizieR On-line Data Catalog: B/GCVS*. **1**. [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[2009yCat....102025S](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2009yCat....102025S). [VizieR table entry](http://vizier.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/VizieR-5?-ref=VIZ5a206ac851ea&-out.add=.&-source=B/GCVS/gcvs_cat&recno=10176)

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Vogt1980_4-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Vogt1980_4-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Vogt1980_4-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Vogt1980_4-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Vogt1980_4-4) Vogt, N; Breysacher, J (February 1980). ["The dwarf nova BV Centauri - A spectroscopic binary"](https://doi.org/10.1086%2F157699). *Astrophysical Journal*. **235**: 945–954. [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[1980ApJ...235..945V](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1980ApJ...235..945V). [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1086/157699](https://doi.org/10.1086%2F157699).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Watson2007_5-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Watson2007_5-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Watson2007_5-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Watson2007_5-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Watson2007_5-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-Watson2007_5-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-Watson2007_5-6) [***h***](#cite_ref-Watson2007_5-7) [***i***](#cite_ref-Watson2007_5-8) [***j***](#cite_ref-Watson2007_5-9) [***k***](#cite_ref-Watson2007_5-10) Watson, C. A; Steeghs, D; Shahbaz, T; Dhillon, V. S (December 2007). ["Roche tomography of cataclysmic variables - IV. Star-spots and slingshot prominences on BV Cen"](https://doi.org/10.1111%2Fj.1365-2966.2007.12173.x). *Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society*. **382** (3): 1105–1118. [arXiv](/source/ArXiv_(identifier)):[0707.0739](https://arxiv.org/abs/0707.0739). [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[2007MNRAS.382.1105W](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2007MNRAS.382.1105W). [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1111/j.1365-2966.2007.12173.x](https://doi.org/10.1111%2Fj.1365-2966.2007.12173.x). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [2073273](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:2073273).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-ramsay_6-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-ramsay_6-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-ramsay_6-2) Ramsay, Gavin; Schreiber, Matthias R; Gänsicke, Boris T; Wheatley, Peter J (2017). "Distances of cataclysmic variables and related objects derived from Gaia Data Release 1". *Astronomy & Astrophysics*. **604**: A107. [arXiv](/source/ArXiv_(identifier)):[1704.00496](https://arxiv.org/abs/1704.00496). [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[2017A&A...604A.107R](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2017A&A...604A.107R). [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1051/0004-6361/201730679](https://doi.org/10.1051%2F0004-6361%2F201730679). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [56464882](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:56464882).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Gilliland1982_7-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Gilliland1982_7-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Gilliland1982_7-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Gilliland1982_7-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Gilliland1982_7-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-Gilliland1982_7-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-Gilliland1982_7-6) Gilliland, R. L. (December 1982). "A time-resolved spectroscopic study and modeling of the dwarf nova BV Centauri". *Astrophysical Journal*. **263**: 302–311. [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[1982ApJ...263..302G](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1982ApJ...263..302G). [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1086/160504](https://doi.org/10.1086%2F160504).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Sion2007_8-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Sion2007_8-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Sion2007_8-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Sion2007_8-3) Sion, Edward M; Godon, Patrick; Cheng, Fuhua; Szkody, Paula (August 2007). "FUSE Observations of the Dwarf Novae UU Aql, BV Cen, and CH UMa in Quiescence". *The Astronomical Journal*. **134** (2): 886–895. [arXiv](/source/ArXiv_(identifier)):[0704.1133](https://arxiv.org/abs/0704.1133). [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[2007AJ....134..886S](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2007AJ....134..886S). [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1086/518829](https://doi.org/10.1086%2F518829). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [14393007](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:14393007).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-SIMBAD_9-0)** ["V* BV Cen -- Dwarf Nova"](http://simbad.u-strasbg.fr/simbad/sim-basic?Ident=V%2A+BV+Cen+--+Dwarf+Nova). *[SIMBAD](/source/SIMBAD)*. [Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg](/source/Centre_de_donn%C3%A9es_astronomiques_de_Strasbourg). Retrieved 2017-11-07.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Plummer2009_10-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Plummer2009_10-1) Plummer, A; Horn, P (June 2009). "The Changing Nature of the Dwarf Nova BV Centauri". *The Journal of the American Association of Variable Star Observers*. **37** (1): 23. [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[2009JAVSO..37...23P](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2009JAVSO..37...23P).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Waterfield1929_11-0)** Waterfield, W. F. H. (January 1929). ["Twenty-five New Variable Stars in Centaurus"](https://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/pdf/1929BHarO.863....6W). *Harvard College Observatory Bulletin*. **863**: 6. Retrieved 14 January 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-xu2019_12-0)** Xu, Xiao-jie; Yu, Zhuo-li; Li, Xiang-Dong (2019). ["The Fe Line Flux Ratio as a Diagnostic of the Maximum Temperature and the White Dwarf Mass of Cataclysmic Variables"](https://doi.org/10.3847%2F1538-4357%2Fab1fe1). *The Astrophysical Journal*. **878** (1): 53. [arXiv](/source/ArXiv_(identifier)):[1905.03399](https://arxiv.org/abs/1905.03399). [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[2019ApJ...878...53X](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2019ApJ...878...53X). [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.3847/1538-4357/ab1fe1](https://doi.org/10.3847%2F1538-4357%2Fab1fe1). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [148571913](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:148571913).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Menzies1986_13-0)** Menzies, J. W; Odonoghue, D; Warner, B (May 1986). ["BV Centauri - Dwarf or classical nova?"](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF00654382). *Astrophysics and Space Science*. **122** (1): 73–80. [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[1986Ap&SS.122...73M](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1986Ap&SS.122...73M). [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1007/BF00654382](https://doi.org/10.1007%2FBF00654382). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [123400202](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:123400202).

v t e Constellation of Centaurus List of stars in Centaurus Centaurus in Chinese astronomy Stars Bayer α A (Rigil Kentaurus) B (Toliman) C (Proxima Centauri) β (Hadar) γ δ ε ζ (Leepwal) η θ (Menkent) ι (Kulou) κ λ μ ν (Heng) ξ1 ξ2 ο1 ο2 π ρ σ τ υ1 υ2 φ χ ψ x1 x2 C3 D E F G H J K M N Q Flamsteed 1 (i) 2 (g) 3 (k) 4 (h) Variable R T V Y RR SV SX BV DY UY V346 V553 V744 V752 V761 (a) V763 (C1) V766 V779 (Krzemiński's star) V803 V810 V816 (Przybylski's Star) V831 V842 V885 V886 V863 V1032 V1369 V1400 V1935 HR 4460 (A) 4466 (C2) 4499 4522 4523 4537 (j) 4546 (B) 4721 4748 (u) 4796 4817 (l) 4831 (w) 4874 (p) 4888 (e) 4889 (n) 4940 (f) 4979 4989 5006 (r) 5041 (m) 5089 (d) 5174 (z) 5222 (y) 5224 5241 5297 5358 (v) 5371 5471 (b) 5485 (c1) 5489 (c2) HD 97413 98176 100453 101581 101930 102117 (Uklun) 103197 107914 108236 109749 110113 113538 113766 114386 114729 115600 116434 (Matza) 117207 117618 (Dofida) 117939 120411 121228 121504 124448 (Popper's Star) 125072 125595 131399 Other 2MASS J1126−5003 2M1207 Gaia BH2 HD 131399 Ab PSR B1259−63 PSR J1311−3430 TOI-763 WASP-15 (Nyamien) WASP-41 WASP-42 WASP-167/KELT-13 Exoplanets 2M1207b b Centauri b HD 101930 b HD 102117 b (Leklsullun) HD 103197 b HD 109749 b HD 113538 b c HD 114386 b HD 114729 b HD 117207 b HD 117618 b (Noifasui) HD 121504 b HIP 65426 b (Najsakopajk) HIP 67522 b NGTS-13b Proxima Centauri b c d WASP-15b (Asye) Star clusters NGC 3766 4230 4507 5281 5286 5316 5460 5617 5662 Other IC 2944 ω Centauri Scorpius–Centaurus association Stock 16 Nebulae NGC 3918 5307 Other Boomerang Nebula Fleming 1 G292.0+1.8 G306.3-0.9 Gum 41 IC 2944 IRAS 13208−6020 RCW 79 RCW 86 Southern Crab Nebula SuWt 2 Galaxies NGC 3557 3568 3749 3783 4444 4603 4622 4650A 4683 4696 4706 4709 4729 4730 4743 4744 4909 4930 4945 4976 5011 A 5026 5064 5082 5090 5091 5102 5114 5121 5128 (Centaurus A) 5161 5206 5253 5266 5291 5398 5408 5419 5483 5516 Other ESO 269-57 ESO 325-4 ESO 383-76 ESO 444-46 Fourcade-Figueroa Object IC 3370 IC 4214 IC 4329A IRAS 13224−3809 J1144−4308 LEDA 677373 PKS 1144−379 PKS 1353−341 PKS 1424−418 Galaxy clusters Abell S740 Centaurus Cluster Shapley Supercluster Astronomical events GW190521 SN 185 SN 1895B (Z) SN 1972E SN 1986G J1407b SN 2019so Category

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [BV Centauri](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BV_Centauri) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BV_Centauri?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.