
Star profile
Kappa Fornax
What is Kappa Fornax
Kappa Fornacis is a yellow G-type star some 72 light-years away —near enough for detailed study and similar enough to the Sun to interest astronomers. It dwells in the small Furnace constellation devised by Lacaille in his celebrated catalogue of the southern sky. Its warm light feels like that of a distant sun, a somewhat evolved sister of the star that gives life to our planet.
Where it is and when to see it
Kappa Fornax lies in the southern 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 15° above the horizon.
- From New York it culminates about 25° above the horizon.
- From Sydney it culminates about 80° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 66° N.
It ranks no. 7 in brightness among the 26 stars of Fornax in our catalogue. To find it, start from Dalim, the brightest: it lies about 12° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 72 years ago.
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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 Kappa Fornax
- Constellation
- Fornax
- Apparent magnitude
- 5.19
- Distance
- 71.6 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 35.636° · Dec -23.816°
- Catalogue
- HIP 11072 · HD 14802
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Other stars in Fornax
Fornax has 26 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- DalimAlpha Fornax3.80
- Beta Fornax4.45
- Nu Fornax4.68
- Omega Fornax4.96
- Delta Fornax4.99
- Phi Fornax5.13
- Mu Fornax5.27
- Pi Fornax5.34