Centaurus X-3
| Observation data Epoch J2000 Equinox J2000 | |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Centaurus |
| Right ascension | 11h 21m 15.09s |
| Declination | −60° 37′ 22.6″ |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 13.25 (- 13.39) - 13.46 |
| Characteristics | |
| Spectral type | O6-7 II-III |
| Variable type | Ellipsoidal & eclipsing |
| Astrometry | |
| Proper motion (μ) | RA: −3.121 mas/yr Dec.: +2.331 mas/yr |
| Parallax (π) | 0.1387±0.0112 mas |
| Distance | 24,000 ± 2,000 ly (7,200 ± 600 pc) |
| Details | |
| Krzemiński's star | |
| Mass | 20.5 ± 0.7 M☉ |
| Radius | 12 R☉ |
| Luminosity | 316,000 L☉ |
| Temperature | 39,000 K |
| X-ray component | |
| Mass | 1.21 ± 0.21 M☉ |
| Other designations | |
| V779 Cen, 1RXS J112115.4-603725, 4U 1118–60, AAVSO 1116-60 | |
| Database references | |
| SIMBAD | data |
Centaurus X-3 (4U 1118–60) is an X-ray pulsar with a period of 4.84 seconds. It was the first X-ray pulsar to be discovered, and the third X-ray source to be discovered in the constellation Centaurus. The system consists of a neutron star orbiting a massive, O-type supergiant star dubbed Krzemiński's star /(k)ʃɛˈmɪnskiz/ after its discoverer, Wojciech Krzemiński. Matter is being accreted from the star onto the neutron star, resulting in X-ray emission.