Star profile
HIP 56970
Variable starWhat is HIP 56970
In Centaurus, that vast austral figure sheltering the closest stars to the Sun, pulses a red variable M-type giant more than eleven hundred light-years away. Its light set out toward the ninth century, when Al-Andalus was flourishing culturally and the northern Christian kingdoms were barely taking root. Far cooler than the Sun yet enormously expanded, its crimson brilliance slowly oscillates, like the deep, ancient breath of the mythic rider.
Where it is and when to see it
HIP 56970 lies in the southern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is April: 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
Stelvia's sky works like a signature wall: anyone can leave their name and a message on a real star, and that signature goes up on the map for everyone to read. Signing is free.
A signature without a lock can be replaced by someone else's. The lock makes the signature permanent and lets you choose a symbolic name for the star, always shown next to the star's catalogue identifier. How the lock works
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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 56970
- Constellation
- Centaurus
- Apparent magnitude
- 5.95
- Distance
- 1140.6 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 175.177° · Dec -53.969°
- Catalogue
- HIP 56970 · HD 101541
A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.
Other stars in Centaurus
Centaurus has 174 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- Rigil KentaurusAlpha 1 Centauri-0.01
- HadarBeta Centauri0.61
- TolimanAlpha 2 Centauri1.35
- HIP 683335.92
- HIP 686705.93
- HIP 699955.93
- HIP 664275.96
- HIP 669245.96