Star profile

Markab

Alpha Pegasi · Pegasus

Hot blue star

3D likeness based on its real data · class B · ~15,000 K

What is Markab

Markab rides on Pegasus's shoulder, a hot blue-white star 133 light-years away that traces one of the four corners of the famous autumn Square. Its name, from the Arabic «mankib», means precisely «shoulder» or «saddle», and helped the astronomers of the caliphate locate the winged horse in the night. When the shipyards of the Mediterranean were still carving oak, its light had already begun this journey.

Where it is and when to see it

Markab lies in the northern 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 54° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 65° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 41° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere north of 75° S.

It ranks no. 3 in brightness among the 98 stars of Pegasus in our catalogue. To find it, start from Enif, the brightest: it lies about 20° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 130 years ago.

Find it on the sky map

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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 Markab

Constellation: Pegasus
Apparent magnitude: 2.49
Distance: 133.4 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 346.190° · Dec 15.205°
Catalogue: HIP 113963 · HD 218045

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

Other stars in Pegasus

Pegasus has 98 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 98 stars in Pegasus