Struve 2883 is a binary star in the constellation Cepheus, best viewed on autumn nights. The famed astronomer William Hershel first recorded this binary on October 7, 1798.
The constellation Cepheus holds a number of gems for backyard astronomers, but Struve 2883 doesn’t come up often on popular observing lists. While it’s somewhat bland compared to nearby HD919, it features a nice contrasting pair of stars with a bright yellow primary and dimmer companion. The primary shines at a magnitude of +5.6 and has a stellar classification of F2V, while the secondary shines at +8.6. The pair lies 109 light years away from us.
My Observations
| Date | September 26, 2022 |
| Time | 10:02 p.m. |
| Location | Seattle, WA |
| Magnification | 169x |
| Scope | Meade 8″ SCT |
| Eyepiece | 12mm |
| Seeing | Good |
| Transparency | Good |
This double is a little closer together than others I’ve observed recently. The primary looks pale yellow or perhaps mustard, while the fainter secondary looks white but with maybe some bluish tint to it. It’s tough to tell the color on the secondary.
Also observed on September 25, 2023, at 10 p.m.: This is a nice contrasting pair. The primary appears more buttery-yellow than white, and the secondary still appears to me to have a bluish tint.
Key Stats
| Constellation | Cepheus |
| Best Viewing | Autumn |
| Visual Magnitude | +5.5, +8.5 |
| Absolute Visual Magnitude | +2.88 |
| Separation | 14.2″ | 477 AU |
| Position Angle | 253° |
| Spectral Class | A=F2V, B=? |
| Distance from Earth | 110 ly |
| Milky Way Location | Orion Spur |
| My Viewing Grade | B |
| Designation | SAO 19922, HR 8474, HIP 109474, HD 210884 |
Sources and Notes
Banner illustration was created by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) and is under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Per ESO agreement: Here is the original image on the ESO website.
1 William Herschel’s double star catalog. (n.d.). https://www.handprint.com/ASTRO/Herschel_All.html
Sketch by Wayne McGraw
The Garden Astronomer 