Star profile

Merope

23 Tauri · Taurus

Variable star

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

What is Merope

Merope was the seventh Pleiad in Greek tradition, called «the lost one» because, according to the myth, she hid her face in shame for loving a mortal. It is a blue variable star, wrapped in dusty nebulosity that the cluster is currently passing through, visible in long-exposure photographs. At 380 light-years, its light set out in the seventeenth century, when that mythical image still being repeated in astronomy books was being coined.

Where it is and when to see it

Merope lies in the northern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is November, when it culminates around midnight.

From London it culminates about 62° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 73° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 32° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere north of 66° S.

It ranks no. 18 in brightness among the 144 stars of Taurus in our catalogue. To find it, start from Aldebaran, the brightest: it lies about 14° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 380 years ago.

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Astronomical data for Merope

Constellation: Taurus
Apparent magnitude: 4.14
Distance: 380.2 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 56.582° · Dec 23.948°
Catalogue: HIP 17608 · HD 23480

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Other stars in Taurus

Taurus has 144 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 144 stars in Taurus