astronomy

Gliese 514

Gliese 514 is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Gliese 514 rather than just read about it. In short: Gliese 514, also known as BD+11 2576 or HIP 65859, is an M-type main-sequence star, in the constellation Virgo 24.88 light-years away from the Solar System. Gliese 514's metallicity Fe/H index is largely unknown, with median values from -0.4 to +0.18 reported in the literature.

Key takeaways

Gliese 514 belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Gliese 514 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Gliese 514 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Gliese 514, also known as BD+11 2576 or HIP 65859, is an M-type main-sequence star, in the constellation Virgo 24.88 light-years away from the Solar System. Gliese 514's metallicity Fe/H index is largely unknown, with median values from -0.4 to +0.18 reported in the literature. This discrepancy is due to peculiarities of the stellar spectrum of Gliese 514. The spectrum peculiarities also affect the accuracy of the star's temperature measurement, with reported values as low as 2901 K. The spectrum of Gliese 514 shows emission lines, but the star itself has a low starspot activity. Multiplicity surveys did not detect any stellar companions as of 2020. The Sun is currently calculated to be passing through the tidal tail of Gliese 514's Oort cloud. Thus, future interstellar objects passing through the Solar System may originate from Gliese 514.

Planetary system The existence of a planet on a 15-day orbit around Gliese 514 was first suspected in 2019. However, that planet was not confirmed. Instead, in 2022, one Super-Earth planet, named Gliese 514 b, was discovered on an eccentric 140-day orbit by the radial velocity method. The planetary orbit partially lies within the habitable zone of the parent star with planetary equilibrium temperature, averaged along orbit, equal to 202±11 K. The infrared excess of the star also indicates the possible presence of a debris disk in the system, albeit at a low signal to noise ratio.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Gliese 514

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Gliese 514 claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Gliese 514 before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Gliese 514 ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Gliese 514

In research: Gliese 514 appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Gliese 514 in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Gliese 514 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Durchmusterung objects, Emission-line stars, Gliese and GJ objects, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Gliese 514 outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Gliese 514 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Gliese 514 means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Gliese 514 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Gliese 514 in simple terms?

Why does Gliese 514 matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Gliese 514?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Gliese 514.