Star profile
Delta Centauri
Variable starWhat is Delta Centauri
Delta Centauri is one of those stars that breathes. It spins so fast —around 263 km/s at the equator— that it has flung off a disk of gas, and that disk forms and fades over the centuries, making the star flicker softly between magnitude 2.5 and 2.6. Its blue light, born 415 light-years away, has been crossing the ocean for centuries before reaching any southern observer.
Where it is and when to see it
Delta Centauri 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, 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 culminates about 73° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 39° N.
It ranks no. 9 in brightness among the 174 stars of Centaurus in our catalogue. To find it, start from Rigil Kentaurus, the brightest: it lies about 23° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 420 years ago.
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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 Delta Centauri
- Constellation
- Centaurus
- Apparent magnitude
- 2.58
- Distance
- 415.0 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 182.090° · Dec -50.722°
- Catalogue
- HIP 59196 · HD 105435
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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
- Epsilon Centauri2.29
- Eta Centauri2.33
- Zeta Centauri2.55
- Iota Centauri2.75
- Lambda Centauri3.11