Star profile
1 Lynx
Variable starWhat is 1 Lynx
1 Lyncis is a red M-type giant, an old swollen star that varies slowly at some 638 light-years away. It inhabits Lynx, the subtle constellation Hevelius traced in the late seventeenth century as a challenge to eyesight —only a lynx, he said, could discern it—. Its reddish, throbbing light set out while Gothic cathedrals were still being carved, and crosses the dark with the calm of a star nearing the end of its road.
Where it is and when to see it
1 Lynx 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: the Sun sits at the opposite point of the sky and the star culminates around midnight. How high it climbs above the horizon depends on the latitude you watch from.
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The signature wall
Stelvia's sky works like a signature wall: anyone can leave their name and a message on a real star, and that signature goes up on the map for everyone to read. Signing is free.
A signature without a lock can be replaced by someone else's. The lock makes the signature permanent and lets you choose a symbolic name for the star, always shown next to the star's catalogue identifier. How the lock works
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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 1 Lynx
- Constellation
- Lynx
- Apparent magnitude
- 5.01
- Distance
- 638.4 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 94.478° · Dec 61.515°
- Catalogue
- HIP 29919 · HD 42973
A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.
Other stars in Lynx
Lynx has 60 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
See all 60 stars in Lynx