Star profile

Mu 2 Cancri

3D likeness based on its real data · class G · ~5,500 K

What is Mu 2 Cancri

Mu-2 Cancri is a yellow type-G star some 76 light-years away —close enough to count as an astronomical neighbour. Cancer, the Crab, is the faintest of the zodiacal constellations, yet it shelters the open cluster of the Manger, Praesepe, one of the wonders of the telescopic sky. Mu-2 is a star not so very different from the Sun, though with its own evolutionary story.

Where it is and when to see it

Mu 2 Cancri 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 culminates about 60° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 71° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 35° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere north of 68° S.

It ranks no. 15 in brightness among the 49 stars of Cancer in our catalogue. To find it, start from Tarf, the brightest: it lies about 13° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 76 years ago.

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Astronomical data for Mu 2 Cancri

Constellation: Cancer
Apparent magnitude: 5.30
Distance: 76.0 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 121.941° · Dec 21.582°
Catalogue: HIP 39780 · HD 67228

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

Other stars in Cancer

Cancer has 49 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 49 stars in Cancer