Star profile
Lambda Aquarii
Variable starWhat is Lambda Aquarii
Lambda Aquarii is a cool red giant of type M, set some 385 light-years away, whose brightness shifts slowly: it belongs to the family of semiregular variables, those ageing suns that breathe over the course of months. It marks one of the Water Bearer's shoulders and stands in the part of the sky where the ancients saw Aquarius' symbolic stream flowing southward.
Where it is and when to see it
Lambda Aquarii lies in the southern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is September, when it culminates around midnight.
- From London it culminates about 31° above the horizon.
- From New York it culminates about 42° above the horizon.
- From Sydney it culminates about 64° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 82° N.
It ranks no. 6 in brightness among the 99 stars of Aquarius in our catalogue. To find it, start from Sadalsuud, the brightest: it lies about 20° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 390 years ago.
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Astronomical data for Lambda Aquarii
- Constellation
- Aquarius
- Apparent magnitude
- 3.73
- Distance
- 385.1 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 343.154° · Dec -7.580°
- Catalogue
- HIP 112961 · HD 216386
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Other stars in Aquarius
Aquarius has 99 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- SadalsuudBeta Aquarii2.90
- SadalmelikAlpha Aquarii2.95
- SkatDelta Aquarii3.27
- Zeta 1 Aquarii3.65
- 88 Aquarii3.68
- AlbaliEpsilon Aquarii3.78
- SadachbiaGamma Aquarii3.86
- 98 Aquarii3.96