Star profile

17 Comae Berenices

Variable star

3D likeness based on its real data · class A · ~8,500 K

What is 17 Comae Berenices

17 Comae Berenices is a white variable about two hundred and thirty-seven light-years away, within the Coma open cluster —one of the closest to the Sun and visible to the naked eye as a veil of bright dust. Its light fluctuates in small oscillations, the inheritance of a still-young atmosphere. It shares a common history with hundreds of sister stars born hundreds of millions of years ago from the same cloud.

Where it is and when to see it

17 Comae Berenices lies in the northern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is March, when it culminates around midnight.

From London it culminates about 64° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 75° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 30° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere north of 64° S.

It ranks no. 21 in brightness among the 39 stars of Coma Berenices in our catalogue. To find it, start from Beta Comae Berenices, the brightest: it lies about 10° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 240 years ago.

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Astronomical data for 17 Comae Berenices

Constellation: Coma Berenices
Apparent magnitude: 5.29
Distance: 237.8 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 187.228° · Dec 25.913°
Catalogue: HIP 60904 · HD 108662

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Other stars in Coma Berenices

Coma Berenices has 39 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 39 stars in Coma Berenices