
Star profile
Epsilon Chamaeleon
Hot blue starWhat is Epsilon Chamaeleon
ε Chamaeleontis is a hot blue star embedded in a small young stellar association that bears its name —one of the closest sites of stellar formation to the Sun. There, just over three hundred light-years away, dozens of newly ignited suns share a molecular cradle. Its cold light illuminates the discreet Chameleon, a constellation traced by the explorers of the southern seas.
Where it is and when to see it
Epsilon Chamaeleon 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 46° up.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 12° N.
It ranks no. 6 in brightness among the 19 stars of Chamaeleon in our catalogue. To find it, start from Alpha Chamaeleon, the brightest: it lies about 12° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 360 years ago.
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Astronomical data for Epsilon Chamaeleon
- Constellation
- Chamaeleon
- Apparent magnitude
- 4.88
- Distance
- 361.6 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 179.907° · Dec -78.222°
- Catalogue
- HIP 58484 · HD 104174
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Other stars in Chamaeleon
Chamaeleon has 19 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- Alpha Chamaeleon4.05
- Gamma Chamaeleon4.11
- Beta Chamaeleon4.24
- Theta Chamaeleon4.34
- Delta 2 Chamaeleon4.45
- Kappa Chamaeleon5.04
- Zeta Chamaeleon5.07
- Iota Chamaeleon5.34