---
title: "CTA 102"
url: "https://spacecatalog.org/object/cta-102"
release: "DR1"
licence: "CC-BY-4.0"
citation: "SpaceCatalog. CTA 102 [catalogue entry]. Data release DR1 (2026-08-21). https://spacecatalog.org/object/cta-102"
---

# CTA 102

CTA 102 is a quasar in the constellation [Pegasus](https://spacecatalog.org/constellation/pegasus), 22.32 Gly from Earth.

A blazar that flares hard enough to be followed in a small telescope from eight billion light-years away — in 2016 it brightened by a factor of a hundred. In 1965 a claimed periodicity in its radio output was briefly reported as a possible artificial signal.

## At a glance

- **WHAT IT IS:** Quasar
- **HOW FAR:** 22.32 Gly — A luminosity distance, from its redshift — how faint it looks. The light itself left 7.79 billion years ago.
- **WHERE TO LOOK:** [Pegasus](https://spacecatalog.org/constellation/pegasus) — The patch of sky it sits in, as seen from Earth.

## Properties

| Quantity | Value |
| --- | --- |
| CLASS | Quasar |
| DISTANCE FROM EARTH | 22.32 Gly — by luminosity distance from a published redshift, flat ΛCDM with H0 = 70 km/s/Mpc |
| CONSTELLATION | Pegasus |
| RIGHT ASCENSION (J2000) | 22h 32m 36.4s |
| DECLINATION (J2000) | +11° 43′ 50.9″ |

## Catalogue data

### WHAT KIND OF THING IT IS

What the object is in itself, rather than how it happens to look from here.

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Accretion state | quasar — a thin disc near its Eddington limit |

### WHERE IT IS AND HOW IT MOVES

Position, motion across the sky and the size it covers on it. These are measurements of the object as seen from here, so every one of them depends on where here is.

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Redshift (z) | 1.03624 |

## Also known as

- Common name: CTA 102

## Source

[SpaceCatalog curated data](https://spacecatalog.org/releases) — CC-BY-4.0

How this was made: https://spacecatalog.org/methods#source-curated

## Cite this page

SpaceCatalog. CTA 102 \[catalogue entry\]. Data release DR1 (2026-08-21). https://spacecatalog.org/object/cta-102

```bibtex
@misc{spacecatalog_cta-102,
  author       = {{SpaceCatalog}},
  title        = {{CTA 102}},
  howpublished = {SpaceCatalog, data release DR1 (2026-08-21)},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://spacecatalog.org/object/cta-102},
  note         = {Catalogue entry, data release DR1 (2026-08-21). Values from SpaceCatalog curated data.}
}
```

SpaceCatalog curated data — CC-BY-4.0

The page itself, with its pictures, the sky map and the observing tools: https://spacecatalog.org/object/cta-102