Star profile
HIP 51438
What is HIP 51438
A white star in the constellation Carina, whose light crossed 260 years of emptiness before reaching our telescopes. When it left her surface, James Cook was sailing the Pacific and European Enlightenment scholars were charting the southern sky for the first time. An A-class object, hotter than the Sun, casting the characteristic white glow of young, dust-free stars.
Where it is and when to see it
HIP 51438 lies in the southern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is May, when it culminates around midnight.
- From London it never rises above the horizon.
- From New York it never rises above the horizon.
- From Sydney it never sets and culminates about 52° up.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 18° N.
It ranks no. 34 in brightness among the 124 stars of Carina in our catalogue. To find it, start from Canopus, the brightest: it lies about 32° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 260 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 HIP 51438
- Constellation
- Carina
- Apparent magnitude
- 4.72
- Distance
- 260.5 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 157.584° · Dec -71.993°
- Catalogue
- HIP 51438 · HD 91375
A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.
Other stars in Carina
Carina has 124 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- CanopusAlpha Carinae-0.62
- MiaplacidusBeta Carinae1.67
- AviorEpsilon Carinae1.86
- HIP 511924.65
- HIP 446264.66
- HIP 521024.69
- HIP 399034.74
- HIP 523704.76