Epsilon Crucis, ε Crucis (abbreviated Eps Cru, ε Cru), also known as Ginan , is a single, orange-hued star in the southern constellation of

Crux Crux () is a constellation of the southern sky that is centred on four bright stars in a cross-shaped asterism commonly known as the Southern Cross. It lies on the southern end of the Milky Way's visible band. The name ''Crux'' is Latin for ...

. Measurements made by the Hipparcos

spacecraft A spacecraft is a vehicle or machine designed to fly in outer space. A type of artificial satellite, spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, Earth observation, meteorology, navigation, space colonization, p ...

showed an annual parallax shift of 14.19 mas, which provides a distance estimate of about 230 light years. The star can be seen with the naked eye, having an

apparent visual 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 lig ...

of 3.58. It is moving closer to the Sun with a radial velocity of −4.60 km.s⁻¹. This is a

giant star A giant star is a star with substantially larger radius and luminosity than a main-sequence (or ''dwarf'') star of the same surface temperature.Giant star, entry in ''Astronomy Encyclopedia'', ed. Patrick Moore, New York: Oxford University Press ...

of type K with a stellar classification of K3III, indicating that it has exhausted the hydrogen at its

core Core or cores may refer to: Science and technology * Core (anatomy), everything except the appendages * Core (manufacturing), used in casting and molding * Core (optical fiber), the signal-carrying portion of an optical fiber * Core, the centra ...

and

evolved Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...

away from the main sequence. It is about two billion years old with 1.5 times the mass of the Sun and has expanded to 28 times the Sun's radius. The star is shining with around 302 times the

Sun's luminosity The solar luminosity (), is a unit of radiant flux (power emitted in the form of photons) conventionally used by astronomers to measure the luminosity of stars, galaxies and other celestial objects in terms of the output of the Sun. One nominal ...

from its enlarged photosphere at an effective temperature of 4,294 K.

Nomenclature

ε Crucis ( Latinised to ''Epsilon Crucis'') is the star's Bayer designation. The system bore the traditional name ''Ginan'' in the culture of the Wardaman people of the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...

of Australia, refers to a dilly bag - the "Bag of Songs." In 2016, the IAU organized a

Working Group on Star Names The International Astronomical Union (IAU) established a Working Group on Star Names (WGSN) in May 2016 to catalog and standardize proper names for stars for the international astronomical community. It operates under Division C – Education ...

(WGSN) to catalog and standardize proper names for stars. The WGSN approved the name ''Ginan'' for Epsilon Crucis on 19 November 2017 and it is now so included in the List of IAU-approved Star Names. It was also sometimes called ''Intrometida'' (intrusive) in

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

In culture

Ginan is represented on the national flags of Australia,

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

and

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...

. It is also featured in the flag of

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, along with 26 other stars, each of which represents a state. It represents the State of

Espírito Santo Espírito Santo (, , ; ) is a state in southeastern Brazil. Its capital is Vitória, and its largest city is Serra. With an extensive coastline, the state hosts some of the country's main ports, and its beaches are significant tourist attra ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ginan (star) Crucis, Epsilon Crux (constellation) Ginan K-type giants 060260 107446 4700 Durchmusterung objects Suspected variables