L2 Puppis

L² Puppis (also known as HD 56096) is a giant star in the constellation of Puppis and is located between the bright stars Canopus and Sirius. It is a semi-regular pulsating star that varies in apparent magnitude from 2.60 down to 6.00 with a period of 140.83 days. The variation in light may be caused by a combination of radial pulsations in the star's atmosphere and by dimming from circumstellar dust. This is most likely an asymptotic giant branch star that has passed through the main sequence and is evolving to become a white dwarf. It is shedding mass at the rate of about 2.2 × 10⁻⁹ solar masses per year. Recently the star has had an apparent magnitude range of about 6.9 to 8.

L2 Puppis has a visual 10th magnitude companion about a minute of arc away.

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