Star profile
Ashlesha
Epsilon Hydrae · Hydra
Variable starWhat is Ashlesha
Ashlesha shines with warm yellow light in Hydra, 129 light-years away, and belongs to the family of variable stars whose brightness changes in gentle beats. Its name comes from Sanskrit and designates one of the nakshatras, the lunar mansions of ancient Vedic astronomy: the mansion associated with serpents and secret wisdom. Hydra is the longest constellation in the sky, and Ashlesha pulses along one of its curves, like a slow heartbeat among the scales.
Where it is and when to see it
Ashlesha lies in the northern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is February: the Sun sits at the opposite point of the sky and the star culminates around midnight. How high it climbs above the horizon depends on the latitude you watch from.
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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 Ashlesha
- Constellation
- Hydra
- Apparent magnitude
- 3.38
- Distance
- 129.3 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 131.694° · Dec 6.419°
- Catalogue
- HIP 43109 · HD 74874
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Other stars in Hydra
Hydra has 121 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- AlphardAlpha Hydrae1.99
- Gamma Hydrae2.99
- Zeta Hydrae3.11
- Nu Hydrae3.11
- Pi Hydrae3.25
- Xi Hydrae3.54
- Lambda Hydrae3.61
- Mu Hydrae3.83