Delta Pavonis

Physical characteristics

This object is a subgiant of spectral type G8 IV; it will stop fusing hydrogen at its core relatively soon, starting the process of becoming a red giant. Hence, Delta Pavonis is 24% brighter than the Sun, but the effective temperature of its outer atmosphere is less: 5,571 K. Its mass is 107% of Sun's mass, with a radius 120% of Sun's radius. Delta Pavonis's surface convection zone extends downward to about 43.1% of the star's radius, but only contains 4.8% of the star's mass.

Spectroscopic examination of Delta Pavonis shows that it has a higher abundance of elements heavier than helium (metallicity) than does the Sun. This value is typically given in terms of the ratio of iron (chemical symbol Fe) to hydrogen (H) in a star's atmosphere, relative to that in Sun's atmosphere (iron being a good proxy for the presence of other heavy elements). The metallicity of Delta Pavonis is approximately

$${\displaystyle \begin{array}{c}\left[\frac{Fe}{H}\right]=0.371\end{array}}$$

This notation gives the logarithm of the iron-to-hydrogen ratio, relative to that of the Sun, meaning that Delta Pavonis's iron abundance is 235% of that of Sun. It is considered super metal-rich, and the high metallicity has slowed its evolution. Studies show a correlation between abundant heavy elements in stars and the presence of a planetary system, so Delta Pavonis has a greater than average probability of harboring planets.

The age of Delta Pavonis is approximately 6.1 billion years. It has a projected rotational velocity of 0.32 kilometers per second, and is spinning with a period of roughly 21 days, slightly faster than the Sun.