Star profile

45 Cancri

3D likeness based on its real data · class A · ~8,500 K

What is 45 Cancri

45 Cancri lies 927 light-years away, in one of the faintest zodiacal constellations. It is a white A-type star, young and hot, whose modest brightness from Earth belies its true power: at that distance, a star like this far outshines the Sun. Cancer holds within its bounds the Beehive Cluster —M44—, one of the oldest stellar groups known to humanity.

Where it is and when to see it

45 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 51° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 62° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 43° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere north of 77° S.

It ranks no. 28 in brightness among the 49 stars of Cancer in our catalogue. To find it, start from Tarf, the brightest: it lies about 7° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 930 years ago.

Find it on the sky map

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

Leave your signature on 45 Cancri

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 45 Cancri

Constellation: Cancer
Apparent magnitude: 5.62
Distance: 926.7 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 130.801° · Dec 12.681°
Catalogue: HIP 42795 · HD 74228

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