Star profile

Gamma 1 Octans

Southern polar star

3D likeness based on its real data · class G · ~5,500 K

What is Gamma 1 Octans

Gamma-1 Octantis belongs to the small, forgotten constellation of the Octant, the navigational instrument that Lacaille placed around the southern celestial pole. A yellow type G giant some 265 light-years away, it shines in a region of the firmament devoid of conspicuous stars, where Earth's rotation axis points without the favour that Polaris grants to the north. A modest beacon, yet a faithful companion of the invisible pole.

Where it is and when to see it

Gamma 1 Octans lies in the southern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is July, when it culminates around midnight.

From London it never rises above the horizon.
From New York it never rises above the horizon.
From Sydney it never sets and culminates about 42° up.

It can be seen from anywhere south of 8° N.

It ranks no. 6 in brightness among the 35 stars of Octans in our catalogue. To find it, start from Nu Octans, the brightest: it lies about 7° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 270 years ago.

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Astronomical data for Gamma 1 Octans

Constellation: Octans
Apparent magnitude: 5.10
Distance: 265.2 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 358.028° · Dec -82.019°
Catalogue: HIP 117689 · HD 223647

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Other stars in Octans

Octans has 35 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 35 stars in Octans