Star profile
Mu Virginis
What is Mu Virginis
Mu Virginis, named Rijl al-Awwa — «the foot of the barking one» — in old Arabic calendars, is a nearby yellow-white star just sixty light-years away. It is an F2 giant near 6,500 kelvin, with a modest brightness that makes it a quiet neighbour in Virgo. Its name recalls a celestial dog barking from the southern edge of the constellation, a trace of medieval astronomy still alive in the catalogues.
Where it is and when to see it
Mu Virginis 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: 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.
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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
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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 Mu Virginis
- Constellation
- Virgo
- Apparent magnitude
- 3.87
- Distance
- 59.6 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 220.765° · Dec -5.658°
- Catalogue
- HIP 71957 · HD 129502
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
- PorrimaGamma Virginis2.74
- VindemiatrixEpsilon Virginis2.85
- Gamma Virginis3.52
- ZavijavaBeta Virginis3.59
- 109 Virginis3.73
- ZaniahEta Virginis3.89
- Nu Virginis4.04