Star profile

Xi 1 Ceti

3D likeness based on its real data · class G · ~5,500 K

What is Xi 1 Ceti

ξ¹ Ceti dwells in the sea-monster Cetus, on the celestial equator. It is a binary system 383 light-years away whose true nature was revealed in 1901 by William Wallace Campbell with the spectrograph at Lick Observatory. The two stars orbit each other in a near-perfect circle every 4.5 years, separated by less than four astronomical units. The primary is a yellow giant with a touch of barium in its atmosphere.

Where it is and when to see it

Xi 1 Ceti lies in the northern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is October, when it culminates around midnight.

From London it culminates about 47° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 58° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 47° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere north of 81° S.

It ranks no. 14 in brightness among the 111 stars of Cetus in our catalogue. To find it, start from Diphda, the brightest: it lies about 35° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 380 years ago.

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Astronomical data for Xi 1 Ceti

Constellation: Cetus
Apparent magnitude: 4.36
Distance: 383.3 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 33.250° · Dec 8.847°
Catalogue: HIP 10324 · HD 13611

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Other stars in Cetus

Cetus has 111 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 111 stars in Cetus