Tau-1

Its story

Tau-1 Hydrae is a yellow-white F-type star a mere 56 light-years away, set in the head of the enormous water serpent that unwinds across the southern sky. It is a relatively close neighbour of the Sun: a touch hotter and more luminous, with a creamy white tone easily recognised at the eyepiece. When its light set out toward us, the twentieth century was entering its final stretch; arriving tonight, it serves as an intimate yardstick of the stellar neighbourhood we belong to.