Star profile
Alpha Lacerta
What is Alpha Lacerta
Alpha Lacertae is the brightest light of Lacerta, the modest Lizard that Polish astronomer Hevelius drew between Cygnus and Andromeda in 1687 to fill a gap in the northern sky. She is a white main-sequence star, twice the Sun's mass and a little more than twice its radius, settled just 103 light-years away. Alone, she holds together a constellation that would otherwise be almost invisible.
Where it is and when to see it
Alpha Lacerta 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 never sets and culminates about 89° up.
- From New York it never sets and culminates about 80° up.
- From Sydney it culminates about 6° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere north of 40° S.
It is the brightest of the 36 stars of Lacerta in our catalogue, which makes it the best starting point for finding your way around the constellation.
The light you see today left it about 100 years ago.
It opens in your browser. Free, no account, nothing to install.
Leave your signature on Alpha Lacerta
Your name and a message go up on the map for everyone to read. Signing is free.
Without a lock, someone else can replace your signature. How the lock works
We'll ask for an email to confirm it's you, no password.
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 Alpha Lacerta
- Constellation
- Lacerta
- Apparent magnitude
- 3.76
- Distance
- 102.6 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 337.823° · Dec 50.282°
- Catalogue
- HIP 111169 · HD 213558
A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.
Other stars in Lacerta
Lacerta has 36 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- 1 Lacerta4.14
- 5 Lacerta4.34
- Beta Lacerta4.42
- HIP 1097544.50
- 11 Lacerta4.50
- 6 Lacerta4.52
- 2 Lacerta4.55
- 4 Lacerta4.55