Star profile

Zeta Hydrae

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

What is Zeta Hydrae

Zeta Hydrae traces the neck of the sky's longest serpent, a constellation winding more than a hundred degrees above the horizon. It is a yellow G-type giant some 167 light-years away —an inflated, aged glimpse of what our Sun will become once it exhausts its core hydrogen. Its warm glow stands as one of the few bright landmarks in a constellation otherwise drawn in subtle strokes.

Where it is and when to see it

Zeta Hydrae 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, when it culminates around midnight.

From London it culminates about 44° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 55° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 50° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere north of 84° S.

It ranks no. 3 in brightness among the 121 stars of Hydra in our catalogue. To find it, start from Alphard, the brightest: it lies about 17° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 170 years ago.

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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 Zeta Hydrae

Constellation: Hydra
Apparent magnitude: 3.11
Distance: 167.2 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 133.848° · Dec 5.946°
Catalogue: HIP 43813 · HD 76294

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

Other stars in Hydra

Hydra has 121 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 121 stars in Hydra