
Star profile
HIP 70069
Hot blue starWhat is HIP 70069
Deep in the southern Centaur burns a blue giant whose light took 1,226 years to reach us. When it left that surface, Iberian kingdoms were sharpening swords for the battle of Las Navas de Tolosa and medieval Europe was tilting toward its long autumn. It belongs to class B —blue-white, several times hotter than the Sun—, one of those stellar bonfires that burn through their fuel with cosmic haste.
Where it is and when to see it
HIP 70069 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 never rises above the horizon.
- From Sydney it never sets and culminates about 68° up.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 34° N.
It ranks no. 31 in brightness among the 174 stars of Centaurus in our catalogue. To find it, start from Rigil Kentaurus, the brightest: it lies about 5° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 1,200 years ago.
It opens in your browser. Free, no account, nothing to install.
Leave your signature on HIP 70069
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.
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 HIP 70069
- Constellation
- Centaurus
- Apparent magnitude
- 4.30
- Distance
- 1226.3 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 215.081° · Dec -56.386°
- Catalogue
- HIP 70069 · HD 125288
A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.
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
- HIP 628964.25
- Xi 2 Centauri4.27
- HIP 576694.30
- 3 Centauri4.32
- HIP 628674.33