Star profile
Phi Centauri
Hot blue starWhat is Phi Centauri
φ Centauri is a hot blue star, part of the vast Scorpius-Centaurus complex, the nearest young stellar association to the Sun. Its siblings share a common origin: a molecular cloud that gave birth to hundreds of blue suns just a few million years ago. It shines with the metallic clarity of stellar youth across the southern firmament.
Where it is and when to see it
Phi 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 May, when it culminates around midnight.
- From London it never rises above the horizon.
- From New York it culminates about 7° above the horizon.
- From Sydney it culminates about 82° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 48° N.
It ranks no. 15 in brightness among the 174 stars of Centaurus in our catalogue. To find it, start from Rigil Kentaurus, the brightest: it lies about 20° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 530 years ago.
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Astronomical data for Phi Centauri
- Constellation
- Centaurus
- Apparent magnitude
- 3.83
- Distance
- 525.3 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 209.568° · Dec -42.101°
- Catalogue
- HIP 68245 · HD 121743
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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
- Kappa Centauri3.13
- Nu Centauri3.41
- Mu Centauri3.47
- Tau Centauri3.85
- Upsilon 1 Centauri3.87