Star profile

Epsilon Tucanae

Hot blue star

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

What is Epsilon Tucanae

Epsilon Tucanae is a blue B-type star, hot and fast, about 373 light-years away in the southern Toucan. Its atmosphere, above 12,000 degrees, emits an intense blue-white light that sets it apart from the more orange suns of the region. The constellation itself was sketched by Dutch navigators in the sixteenth century while charting the skies of the Cape of Good Hope for the first time, and Epsilon is one of the pieces that quietly but firmly outlines the tropical bird's body.

Where it is and when to see it

Epsilon Tucanae 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 never rises above the horizon.
From Sydney it never sets and culminates about 58° up.

It can be seen from anywhere south of 24° N.

It ranks no. 6 in brightness among the 28 stars of Tucana in our catalogue. To find it, start from Alpha Tucanae, the brightest: it lies about 13° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 370 years ago.

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Astronomical data for Epsilon Tucanae

Constellation: Tucana
Apparent magnitude: 4.49
Distance: 373.2 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 359.979° · Dec -65.577°
Catalogue: HIP 118322 · HD 224686

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Other stars in Tucana

Tucana has 28 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 28 stars in Tucana