
Star profile
HIP 3170
What is HIP 3170
In Tucana, the exotic bird of the southern sky, shines a yellow G-type star 81 light-years away. Its warm light set out around the end of the Second World War, as Europe tried to rebuild itself among ruins and new borders. Close cousin of the Sun in colour and temperature, it now reaches us as a quiet echo amid the stylised feathers that Dutch navigators christened the toucan.
Where it is and when to see it
HIP 3170 lies in the southern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is August, 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 never sets and culminates about 64° up.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 31° N.
It ranks no. 24 in brightness among the 28 stars of Tucana in our catalogue. To find it, start from Alpha Tucanae, the brightest: it lies about 18° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 81 years ago.
It opens in your browser. Free, no account, nothing to install.
Leave your signature on HIP 3170
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 HIP 3170
- Constellation
- Tucana
- Apparent magnitude
- 5.89
- Distance
- 81.4 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 10.105° · Dec -59.455°
- Catalogue
- HIP 3170 · HD 3823
A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.
Other stars in Tucana
Tucana has 28 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- Alpha Tucanae2.87
- Gamma Tucanae3.99
- Zeta Tucanae4.23
- HIP 1159085.66
- HIP 1170885.73
- HIP 42005.73
- HIP 1180925.95
- HIP 1119675.98