Star profile

Gamma Sculptor

3D likeness based on its real data · class K · ~4,200 K

What is Gamma Sculptor

Gamma Sculptoris is an orange giant 182 light-years away, fixed in the so-called red clump of the stellar diagram: that brief, luminous stage where evolved stars fuse helium at their core. Eleven times the Sun's radius, fifty-three times its brightness, nearly five billion years of existence. A warm, serene light in a modern constellation, drawn in the eighteenth century by the astronomer Lacaille in honour of the sculptor's workshop.

Where it is and when to see it

Gamma Sculptor 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 culminates about 6° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 17° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 89° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere south of 57° N.

It ranks no. 3 in brightness among the 33 stars of Sculptor in our catalogue. To find it, start from Alpha Sculptor, the brightest: it lies about 22° 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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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 Gamma Sculptor

Constellation: Sculptor
Apparent magnitude: 4.41
Distance: 182.2 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 349.706° · Dec -32.532°
Catalogue: HIP 115102 · HD 219784

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

Other stars in Sculptor

Sculptor has 33 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 33 stars in Sculptor