Star profile

HIP 55797

3D likeness based on its real data · class K · ~4,200 K

What is HIP 55797

Beneath the wagon of Ursa Major shines an orange K-class giant, lying a little over three hundred light-years away. The coppery light that now defines it departed when the first steamboats were crossing the Seine and European refracting telescopes were beginning to rival the great English reflectors. It is an ageing star, much wider than the Sun but cooler at the surface, locked in a luminous calm that will last for millions of years.

Where it is and when to see it

HIP 55797 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: 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.

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The signature wall

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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 55797

Constellation: Ursa Major
Apparent magnitude: 5.73
Distance: 306.9 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 171.488° · Dec 55.850°
Catalogue: HIP 55797 · HD 99283

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