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| "This star could have *your* name on it! Call the International Star Registry! Operators are standing by!" |
This star's activity cycle (the phenomenon that causes the periodic rise and fall in the number of sunspots on the Sun) is about seven years long, compared to about 10 years for recent solar cycles.
However, 18 Scorpii exhibits a suite of other characteristics that are essentially the same as the Sun's. These include mass, temperature, chemical composition, and luminosity.
"We found that where the Sun's overall brightness varies by typically 0.1 percent over its activity cycle, 18 Sco likewise varies by about 0.09 percent, which is effectively the same," said Jeffrey Hall of Lowell Observatory. "And just like the Sun, 18 Scorpii gets brighter as it gets more active."