Star profile

Saiph

Kappa Orionis · Orion

Hot blue star

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

What is Saiph

Saiph closes off Orion at the lower-east corner, opposite the ruddy Betelgeuse. Its Arabic name means 'sword of the giant', and though it appears fainter than its siblings, it is in fact a colossal blue star burning far away — some 647 light-years off. The light reaching you tonight set out around the mid-fourteenth century, during the years of the Black Death in Europe.

Where it is and when to see it

Saiph lies in the southern 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 29° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 40° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 66° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere south of 80° N.

It ranks no. 6 in brightness among the 128 stars of Orion in our catalogue. To find it, start from Rigel, the brightest: it lies about 8° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 650 years ago.

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Astronomical data for Saiph

Constellation: Orion
Apparent magnitude: 2.07
Distance: 647.2 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 86.939° · Dec -9.670°
Catalogue: HIP 27366 · HD 38771

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Other stars in Orion

Orion has 128 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 128 stars in Orion