Omega Carinae has a
stellar classification of B8 IIIe, which places it in the category of
Be stars, that display
emission lines of hydrogen their
spectrum. Omega Carinae is a
shell star, having a circumstellar disk of gas surrounding its equator. The
luminosity class of III indicates it has
evolved into a
giant star, having exhausted the hydrogen at its core and left the
main sequence. The
effective temperature of in its outer envelope is what gives this star the blue-white hue that is characteristic of B-type stars. This star is rotating rapidly with a
projected rotational velocity of , which gives a lower limit to the star's
azimuthal velocity along the equator. The critical equatorial velocity, at which the star would begin to break up, is . The star's axis of rotation is inclined by an estimated angle of 70.8° to the line of sight from the Earth. In the next 7500 years, the south Celestial pole will pass close to this star (AD 5800) and then
I Carinae. ==In culture==