Star profile

48 Leonis

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

What is 48 Leonis

48 Leonis is a yellow G-type star — the same spectral family as the Sun — but set far further away: 266 light-years. Its light, leaving home around the time of the Peace of Westphalia, now reaches our detectors like the wink of a distant solar twin. It occupies a quiet corner of the spring Lion, where the human imagination draws a mane of stars.

Where it is and when to see it

48 Leonis 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 45° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 56° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 49° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere north of 83° S.

It ranks no. 34 in brightness among the 80 stars of Leo in our catalogue. To find it, start from Regulus, the brightest: it lies about 8° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 270 years ago.

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Astronomical data for 48 Leonis

Constellation: Leo
Apparent magnitude: 5.07
Distance: 266.1 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 158.700° · Dec 6.954°
Catalogue: HIP 51775 · HD 91612

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

Other stars in Leo

Leo has 80 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 80 stars in Leo