Star profile
Eta 2 Pictor
Cool red starWhat is Eta 2 Pictor
Eta2 Pictoris is a cool red M-type giant some 444 light-years away inside the Painter's Easel, the southern figure conceived by Lacaille in the 18th century. Its deeply reddened light comes from an evolved star whose envelope has swollen and cooled after exhausting core hydrogen — one of the late stages in a stellar life.
Where it is and when to see it
Eta 2 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 74° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 40° N.
It ranks no. 6 in brightness among the 23 stars of Pictor in our catalogue. To find it, start from Alpha Pictor, the brightest: it lies about 19° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 440 years ago.
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Astronomical data for Eta 2 Pictor
- Constellation
- Pictor
- Apparent magnitude
- 5.05
- Distance
- 443.8 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 76.242° · Dec -49.578°
- Catalogue
- HIP 23649 · HD 33042
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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
- Delta Pictor4.72
- HIP 289915.04
- HIP 276215.16
- HIP 309325.20
- HIP 279475.29