What Are Birthday Stars & How To Find Them [Easy Method]

What Are Birthday Stars & How To Find Them [Easy Method]

Is the astrology addict within you awakening? You might have heard of birthday stars but confused them for multiple things.

We know people who assume these stars denote our date or time of birth, like our zodiac signs. People who think such stars appear on the same date of our birth or were present on the day we were born.

Well, it’s time to break the myths and get to the facts! Keep reading to find out what a birthday star is and how you can find out yours.

What Are Birthday Stars?

Let’s keep it simple, a birthday star is one whose light has taken as much time to reach the Earth as our lifetime. Not so simple to understand? Let’s break it down in a more comprehensible way.

Imagine you are twenty-two years old. A birthday star is located twenty-two light years away from the Earth. This means that the light coming from that particular star is the same as your current age.

Every year, your birthday star will change as the time taken for light to travel varies between different stars. So, the next year, you would turn twenty-three and would have to find a star that takes the same number of light years to reach us.

It is often easy to spot such stars using a pair of powerful binoculars or a telescope. You can check a star chart to know the current placement and luminosity of the stars to help you find them easily.

How Can We Spot Our Birthday Stars?

We can spot our respective birthday stars using star charts and some handy applications. These will help you find the coordinates of your star.

The benefit we gain from these apps is how they help you set your specific date and year of birth. They then calculate the stars that are placed those particular years away from us. This will then help you find where they are located and spot them.

All you have to do is use your telescope and position it as per the coordinates mentioned in the night sky. Once you map out the location, try to find a bright star that fits the placement specified.

Image1

You can also find the brightness of the stars and check their images on your app. It will save you time rather than spotting it through a telescope. People often get confused as there are so many stars in the sky and their birthday stars could be anywhere among them!

What Else Can I Find Out About The Stars?

One thing you can find other than the name of your birthday star is its luminosity and what constellation it belongs to. Be aware of certain terms, such as Alpha (brightest luminosity), Beta (second brightest), and so on.

This way, if your star is a part of the constellation Orion, you must look in Alpha Orionis. Such constellations are easy to find and once you spot them, you can gauge the precise distance of each star within them.

You can also find the apparent magnitude of each star. This calculates both the amount of light the star produces as well as how it is affected by its distance from the Earth. If the magnitude is about six, then you can view the star easily through a telescope.

Image4

If the magnitude is zero, one, or two, it is bright and can be seen fairly easily provided we have the right equipment. If it is in a negative magnitude, it is exceptionally bright. An example would be the brightest star in our entire night sky, Sirius. It has an apparent magnitude of -1.4 and is extremely bright.

Extra Details For Curious People

If you are curious to know more and find out a bit more about your birthday star, there is so much more you can learn! This means that you can understand the star pattern, significant details about the constellation it belongs to, and the location of the star as per a compass.

Most stars can be seen from the Northern Hemisphere of the Earth and with our naked eyes. If they are too dim, you can spot them with a telescope. If the stars are in the Southern Hemisphere, you might have a problem, as most astronomical research happens in the North.

These stars might not have been studied in detail and apps might not be able to provide you with detailed reports of them. Nevertheless, it is worthwhile to identify the birth of your stars and keep spotting them every year when they change.

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. Is My Birthday Star The One That Was Present When I Was Born?

No, such stars are not those that were dominant during our birth or those that appear every year during our birthdays. They are stars that are the same light years away from the Earth as your current age. Your age is the same as the number of years it takes for light from the stars to reach our eyes.

  1. Can Star Charts Help Me Find My Birthday Star?

Yes, star charts and astronomical apps are ideal for finding your respective stars. They help by providing you with options to enter your specific date of birth and find stars that match them. You will also know where to look and how bright the stars may be.

  1. Does My Birthday Star Keep Changing Or Is It A Constant One?

Your birthday star will change every year as you keep getting older. If you are twenty-four, then you must spot a star that is twenty-four light years away. If you are thirty years old, you must spot a star that is thirty light years away and so on. It keeps changing every year as you keep aging.

Summing Up

Now we know what birthday stars are and how we can spot them in the night sky. It is interesting to note that an occasion that we dedicate a day every year to celebrate coincides with the number of light-years a star is from our planet.

Image3

It is scintillating to observe the intricacies of our universe and marvel at the wonders we discover each day. There are infinitely many stars in the sky and the time taken for their light to reach us varies. It is time to stop reading and grab your telescope to find your unique star!

Leave a Comment