Star profile

63 Aurigae

3D likeness based on its real data · class K · ~4,200 K

What is 63 Aurigae

Catalogued by John Flamsteed in 1725 from the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, 63 Aurigae is an orange giant of class K4 whose radius has swelled to about thirty-seven times the Sun's. Cooler than our star yet far brighter, it pours out three hundred and thirty-five solar luminosities from 485 light-years away. When that light departed, Tycho Brahe was still recording observations at Uraniborg, unaware his tables would one day reach Kepler.

Where it is and when to see it

63 Aurigae lies in the northern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is January, when it culminates around midnight.

From London it never sets and culminates about 78° up.
From New York it culminates about 89° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 17° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere north of 51° S.

It ranks no. 21 in brightness among the 76 stars of Auriga in our catalogue. To find it, start from Capella, the brightest: it lies about 22° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 490 years ago.

Find it on the sky map

It opens in your browser. Free, no account, nothing to install.

Leave your signature on 63 Aurigae

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.

Write my signature

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 63 Aurigae

Constellation: Auriga
Apparent magnitude: 4.91
Distance: 485.4 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 107.914° · Dec 39.321°
Catalogue: HIP 34752 · HD 54716

A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.

Other stars in Auriga

Auriga has 76 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 76 stars in Auriga