Star profile

Lambda 1 Fornax

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

What is Lambda 1 Fornax

λ¹ Fornacis pours an orange light from 365 light-years, in the quiet southern Furnace. A K-class giant, it is a star well into maturity that has swollen its atmosphere and cooled its surface to this characteristic amber hue. Its light first set out when Galileo in Italy was beginning to point a telescope at Jupiter's moons, opening the first modern window onto the deep sky.

Where it is and when to see it

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

From London it culminates about 4° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 15° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 89° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere south of 55° N.

It ranks no. 20 in brightness among the 26 stars of Fornax in our catalogue. To find it, start from Dalim, the brightest: it lies about 10° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 360 years ago.

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Astronomical data for Lambda 1 Fornax

Constellation: Fornax
Apparent magnitude: 5.91
Distance: 364.9 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 38.279° · Dec -34.650°
Catalogue: HIP 11867 · HD 15975

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Other stars in Fornax

Fornax has 26 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 26 stars in Fornax