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Star profile

Tau Ursae Majoris

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

What is Tau Ursae Majoris

τ Ursae Majoris is a white star in the forepaw of the Great Bear, far from the famous Plough but within the ancient full figure of the animal. Its A type reveals a hot, crisp star, one of the many jewels that Greek myth hid in the silhouette of the mortal bear Callisto, transformed by Zeus to bring her to safety in the firmament.

Where it is and when to see it

Tau Ursae Majoris 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: 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.

Find it on the sky map

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

The signature wall

Stelvia's sky works like a signature wall: anyone can leave their name and a message on a real star, and that signature goes up on the map for everyone to read. Signing is free.

A signature without a lock can be replaced by someone else's. The lock makes the signature permanent and lets you choose a symbolic name for the star, always shown next to the star's catalogue identifier. How the lock works

If you don't have an account yet, we'll ask for an email to confirm it's you: we send you a link and that's it, 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 Tau Ursae Majoris

Constellation
Ursa Major
Apparent magnitude
4.67
Distance
126.3 light years
Coordinates (J2000)
RA 137.729° · Dec 63.514°
Catalogue
HIP 45075 · HD 78362

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

Other stars in Ursa Major

Ursa Major has 124 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 124 stars in Ursa Major