Star profile
Theta Antliae
What is Theta Antliae
Theta Antliae is a pair discovered by the South African astronomer W. S. Finsen in 1952, well into the twentieth century—an era when the catalogue of visible binaries was still being filled in. The primary is a white star with strong metallic lines; its companion is a yellow giant. Together they shine at 339 light-years, in the modest constellation of the Air Pump that Lacaille drew to honour the Enlightenment.
Where it is and when to see it
Theta Antliae lies in the southern 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 11° above the horizon.
- From New York it culminates about 22° above the horizon.
- From Sydney it culminates about 84° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 62° N.
It ranks no. 4 in brightness among the 23 stars of Antlia in our catalogue. To find it, start from Alpha Antliae, the brightest: it lies about 10° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 340 years ago.
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Astronomical data for Theta Antliae
- Constellation
- Antlia
- Apparent magnitude
- 4.78
- Distance
- 339.4 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 146.050° · Dec -27.769°
- Catalogue
- HIP 47758 · HD 84367
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Other stars in Antlia
Antlia has 23 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- Alpha Antliae4.28
- Epsilon Antliae4.51
- Iota Antliae4.60
- Eta Antliae5.23
- HIP 508885.34
- HIP 541735.43
- HIP 465785.49
- HIP 518215.50