Star profile
Eta Chamaeleon
Hot blue starWhat is Eta Chamaeleon
η Chamaeleontis is a hot blue star that lends its name to a small association of young suns recently born around it, identified as a cluster in the late 20th century. It is one of the closest stellar groups of its kind and a natural laboratory for studying how stars are born. It shines in the celestial chameleon, another creature of the 16th-century southern bestiary.
Where it is and when to see it
Eta Chamaeleon lies in the southern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is May, 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 45° up.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 11° N.
It ranks no. 11 in brightness among the 19 stars of Chamaeleon in our catalogue. To find it, start from Alpha Chamaeleon, the brightest: it lies about 2° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 310 years ago.
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Astronomical data for Eta Chamaeleon
- Constellation
- Chamaeleon
- Apparent magnitude
- 5.46
- Distance
- 309.8 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 130.332° · Dec -78.963°
- Catalogue
- HIP 42637 · HD 75416
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Other stars in Chamaeleon
Chamaeleon has 19 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- Alpha Chamaeleon4.05
- Gamma Chamaeleon4.11
- Beta Chamaeleon4.24
- Zeta Chamaeleon5.07
- Iota Chamaeleon5.34
- Nu Chamaeleon5.43
- Delta 1 Chamaeleon5.46
- Mu 1 Chamaeleon5.53