Star profile
Chara
Beta Canum Venaticorum · Canes Venatici
Nearby starWhat is Chara
Chara is one of the closest naked-eye neighbours we have: a quiet, yellow G-type star very similar to the Sun, just 27.5 light-years away. Its name means 'joy' in Greek, and it formed part of the two hunting hounds — Asterion and Chara — that chase the Great Bear across the northern sky. Tonight's light set out in 1998, the year the International Space Station first opened to humans.
Where it is and when to see it
Chara 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 never sets and culminates about 80° up.
- From New York it culminates about 89° above the horizon.
- From Sydney it culminates about 15° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere north of 49° S.
It ranks no. 2 in brightness among the 33 stars of Canes Venatici in our catalogue. To find it, start from Cor Caroli, the brightest: it lies about 5° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 28 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 Chara
- Constellation
- Canes Venatici
- Apparent magnitude
- 4.24
- Distance
- 27.5 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 188.436° · Dec 41.357°
- Catalogue
- HIP 61317 · HD 109358
A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.
Other stars in Canes Venatici
Canes Venatici has 33 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- Cor CaroliAlpha 2 Canum Venaticorum2.89
- 24 Canum Venaticorum4.68
- 20 Canum Venaticorum4.72
- 5 Canum Venaticorum4.76
- HIP 676654.76
- 25 Canum Venaticorum4.82
- HIP 662574.91
- HIP 645404.94