Star profile
Lambda Pictor
What is Lambda Pictor
Lambda Pictoris is an orange K-type giant lying some 374 light-years away, in the Painter, a constellation traced by Lacaille after the artist's easel. It is a sun that has already left its youth behind and swollen its atmosphere into a warm, golden veil. Its immediate neighbourhood in the sky is dominated by nearby Beta Pictoris, famous for its dust disc and its young planets.
Where it is and when to see it
Lambda Pictor lies in the southern 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 never rises above the horizon.
- From New York it never rises above the horizon.
- From Sydney it culminates about 73° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 40° N.
It ranks no. 10 in brightness among the 23 stars of Pictor in our catalogue. To find it, start from Alpha Pictor, the brightest: it lies about 21° 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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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 Lambda Pictor
- Constellation
- Pictor
- Apparent magnitude
- 5.30
- Distance
- 374.5 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 70.693° · Dec -50.481°
- Catalogue
- HIP 21914 · HD 30185
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Other stars in Pictor
Pictor has 23 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- Alpha Pictor3.24
- Beta Pictor3.85
- Gamma Pictor4.50
- HIP 276215.16
- HIP 309325.20
- HIP 279475.29
- HIP 272435.31
- Eta 1 Pictor5.37