Star profile

Tiaki

Beta Grus · Grus

Red giant

3D likeness based on its real data · class M · ~3,200 K

What is Tiaki

Tiaki, a red giant 177 light-years from the Earth, shines in the southern constellation of Grus, the Crane, far beyond the reach of skies seen from the north of Europe. Its name comes from Māori, naming the guardian bird that watched over travellers who once crossed the Pacific by reading the stars at night, with no other map than the memory of their elders. Its reddened, time-cooled light left the star when Beethoven was beginning to write the first symphonies that would change the European musical language forever.

Where it is and when to see it

Tiaki 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, when it culminates around midnight.

From London it never rises above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 2° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 77° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere south of 43° N.

It ranks no. 2 in brightness among the 39 stars of Grus in our catalogue. To find it, start from Alnair, the brightest: it lies about 6° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 180 years ago.

Find it on the sky map

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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 Tiaki

Constellation: Grus
Apparent magnitude: 2.07
Distance: 177.0 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 340.667° · Dec -46.885°
Catalogue: HIP 112122 · HD 214952

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

Other stars in Grus

Grus has 39 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 39 stars in Grus