VY Pyxidis is a

BL Herculis variable BL Herculis variables are a subclass of type II Cepheids with low luminosity and mass, that have a period of less than eight days. They are pulsating stars with light curves that frequently show a bump on the descending side for stars of the shorte ...

(

type II Cepheid Type II Cepheids are variable stars which pulsate with periods typically between 1 and 50 days. They are population II stars: old, typically metal-poor, low mass objects. Like all Cepheid variables, Type IIs exhibit a relationship between the st ...

) in the constellation of

Pyxis Pyxis is a small and faint constellation in the southern sky. Abbreviated from Pyxis Nautica, its name is Latin for a mariner's compass (contrasting with Circinus, which represents a draftsman's compasses). Pyxis was introduced by Nicolas-Lo ...

. It ranges between

apparent magnitude Apparent magnitude () is a measure of the brightness of a star or other astronomical object observed from Earth. An object's apparent magnitude depends on its intrinsic luminosity, its distance from Earth, and any extinction of the object's ...

s 7.13 and 7.40 over a period of 1.23995 days. Located around 826 light-years distant, it shines with a luminosity approximately 46 times that of the Sun and has a surface temperature of

References

Pyxis Pyxidis, VY BL Herculis variables F-type giants Durchmusterung objects 043736 076296 {{giant-star-stub