Star profile
Porrima
Gamma Virginis · Virgo
Nearby starWhat is Porrima
Porrima, in the constellation Virgo, is a yellow star just 38 light-years from the Earth: a very close neighbour by cosmic standards, almost on the doorstep of the Solar System. It carries the name of one of the ancient Roman Camenae, minor goddesses who sang the future and watched over women in labour during childbirth, a humble yet crucial role in the domestic religion of Rome. Its steady, gentle light has been crossing European spring skies since long before photography had even been invented in its most rudimentary form anywhere.
Where it is and when to see it
Porrima lies in the southern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is March: the Sun sits at the opposite point of the sky and the star culminates around midnight. How high it climbs above the horizon depends on the latitude you watch from.
It opens in your browser. Free, no account, nothing to install.
The signature wall
Stelvia's sky works like a signature wall: anyone can leave their name and a message on a real star, and that signature goes up on the map for everyone to read. Signing is free.
A signature without a lock can be replaced by someone else's. The lock makes the signature permanent and lets you choose a symbolic name for the star, always shown next to the star's catalogue identifier. How the lock works
If you don't have an account yet, we'll ask for an email to confirm it's you: we send you a link and that's it, no password.
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 Porrima
- Constellation
- Virgo
- Apparent magnitude
- 2.74
- Distance
- 38.1 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 190.415° · Dec -1.449°
- Catalogue
- HIP 61941 · HD 110379
A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.
Other stars in Virgo
Virgo has 99 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- SpicaAlpha Virginis0.98
- VindemiatrixEpsilon Virginis2.85
- HezeZeta Virginis3.38
- MinelauvaDelta Virginis3.39
- Gamma Virginis3.52
- ZavijavaBeta Virginis3.59
- 109 Virginis3.73
- Mu Virginis3.87