Star profile

Psi Boötis

3D likeness based on its real data · class K · ~4,200 K

What is Psi Boötis

Psi Boötis shines at two hundred and forty-six light-years in Boötes, that figure of the shepherd or ploughman driving the Bears around the pole. It is an orange K-type giant, a star past the bloom of its life that has slowly swollen. Its warm light belongs to the celestial neighbourhood ruled by Arcturus, one of the brightest stars of the northern hemisphere.

Where it is and when to see it

Psi Boötis lies in the northern 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 65° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 76° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 29° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere north of 63° S.

It ranks no. 16 in brightness among the 88 stars of Boötes in our catalogue. To find it, start from Arcturus, the brightest: it lies about 14° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 250 years ago.

Find it on the sky map

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

Leave your signature on Psi Boötis

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 Psi Boötis

Constellation: Boötes
Apparent magnitude: 4.52
Distance: 246.0 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 226.111° · Dec 26.948°
Catalogue: HIP 73745 · HD 133582

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

Other stars in Boötes

Boötes has 88 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 88 stars in Boötes