Star profile

Gamma Hydrae

3D likeness based on its real data · class G · ~5,500 K

What is Gamma Hydrae

Gamma Hydrae shines as the second beacon of the longest serpent in the sky, a constellation that uncoils across a quarter of the heavens. Its yellow G-type light arrives after a journey of nearly 134 years —a giant long past the stable youth of the Sun, now entering the phase in which its core teaches itself to fuse helium. Astronomers cross it as they trace Hydra from its southern head toward the austral tail.

Where it is and when to see it

Gamma Hydrae 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 culminates about 15° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 26° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 79° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere south of 67° N.

It ranks no. 2 in brightness among the 121 stars of Hydra in our catalogue. To find it, start from Alphard, the brightest: it lies about 57° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 130 years ago.

Find it on the sky map

It opens in your browser. Free, no account, nothing to install.

Leave your signature on Gamma Hydrae

Your name and a message go up on the map for everyone to read. Signing is free.

Without a lock, someone else can replace your signature. How the lock works

We'll ask for an email to confirm it's you, no password.

Write my signature

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 Gamma Hydrae

Constellation: Hydra
Apparent magnitude: 2.99
Distance: 133.9 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 199.730° · Dec -23.172°
Catalogue: HIP 64962 · HD 115659

A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.

Other stars in Hydra

Hydra has 121 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 121 stars in Hydra