Star profile
Sigma 2 Tauri
What is Sigma 2 Tauri
It belongs to the Hyades, the closest open cluster to Earth, that luminous V which traces the Bull's head and shares a cradle with hundreds of sibling stars born some 625 million years ago. At 156 light-years away this fast-spinning A-type white forms, with its companion Sigma 1, a pair that splits cleanly in binoculars. To contemplate the small fork that includes it is to look at one of the first stellar gatherings whose joint membership was ever mapped.
Where it is and when to see it
Sigma 2 Tauri lies in the northern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is December, when it culminates around midnight.
- From London it culminates about 54° above the horizon.
- From New York it culminates about 65° above the horizon.
- From Sydney it culminates about 40° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere north of 74° S.
It ranks no. 34 in brightness among the 144 stars of Taurus in our catalogue. To find it, start from Aldebaran, the brightest: it lies about 1° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 160 years ago.
It opens in your browser. Free, no account, nothing to install.
Leave your signature on Sigma 2 Tauri
Your name and a message go up on the map for everyone to read. Signing is free.
Without a lock, someone else can replace your signature. How the lock works
We'll ask for an email to confirm it's you, no password.
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 Sigma 2 Tauri
- Constellation
- Taurus
- Apparent magnitude
- 4.67
- Distance
- 155.6 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 69.819° · Dec 15.918°
- Catalogue
- HIP 21683 · HD 29488
A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.
Other stars in Taurus
Taurus has 144 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- AldebaranAlpha Tauri0.87
- ElnathBeta Tauri1.65
- AlcyoneEta Tauri2.85
- 136 Tauri4.56
- Iota Tauri4.62
- Rho Tauri4.65
- Pi Tauri4.69
- HIP 210294.78