Star profile

38 Ceti

3D likeness based on its real data · class F · ~6,500 K

What is 38 Ceti

38 Ceti shines from 140 light-years away, in Cetus —that vast sea creature undulating along the celestial equator. It is an F-type star, slightly hotter and more luminous than the Sun, close enough that its light reaches us in less than a century and a half. Cetus also hosts Mira, the first long-period variable star ever discovered, though it lies in another part of the constellation.

Where it is and when to see it

38 Ceti lies in the southern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is October, when it culminates around midnight.

From London it culminates about 38° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 48° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 57° above the horizon.

It sits almost on the celestial equator, so it can be seen from nearly the whole planet.

It ranks no. 76 in brightness among the 111 stars of Cetus in our catalogue. To find it, start from Diphda, the brightest: it lies about 19° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 140 years ago.

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Astronomical data for 38 Ceti

Constellation: Cetus
Apparent magnitude: 5.70
Distance: 140.0 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 18.705° · Dec -0.974°
Catalogue: HIP 5833 · HD 7476

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Other stars in Cetus

Cetus has 111 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 111 stars in Cetus