Star profile

Iota Capricorni

Variable star

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

What is Iota Capricorni

Iota Capricorni is a yellow giant 197 light-years away, set in the lowland of the Celestial Sea where ancient Babylon already pictured the goat-fish more than three thousand years ago. A small-amplitude variable, it drifts gently around magnitude four while burning helium deep inside its core. Its golden hue stands out clearly against the whiter stars that trace the triangular outline of Capricornus across the southern autumn sky.

Where it is and when to see it

Iota Capricorni lies in the southern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is August: the Sun sits at the opposite point of the sky and the star culminates around midnight. How high it climbs above the horizon depends on the latitude you watch from.

Find it on the sky map

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The signature wall

Stelvia's sky works like a signature wall: anyone can leave their name and a message on a real star, and that signature goes up on the map for everyone to read. Signing is free.

A signature without a lock can be replaced by someone else's. The lock makes the signature permanent and lets you choose a symbolic name for the star, always shown next to the star's catalogue identifier. How the lock works

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Write my signature

A public signature from a real person. The chosen name is a symbolic denomination within Stelvia, with no official standing or IAU recognition: the sky is not for sale and belongs to no one.

Astronomical data for Iota Capricorni

Constellation: Capricornus
Apparent magnitude: 4.28
Distance: 196.7 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 320.562° · Dec -16.835°
Catalogue: HIP 105515 · HD 203387

A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.

Other stars in Capricornus

Capricornus has 48 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 48 stars in Capricornus