Star profile

3 Serpens

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

What is 3 Serpens

3 Serpentis glows orange from 373 light-years away, a K-type giant in the head of the Serpent —near the orange basin of Unukalhai. At magnitude 5.32, right at the edge of naked-eye sight, it is a faint flame demanding clear skies and patience. Its cool light, by solar standards, travels to us from an era when Galileo had not yet turned his lens on Jupiter.

Where it is and when to see it

3 Serpens lies in the northern 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 culminates about 43° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 54° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 51° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere north of 85° S.

It ranks no. 27 in brightness among the 65 stars of Serpens in our catalogue. To find it, start from Unukalhai, the brightest: it lies about 7° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 370 years ago.

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Astronomical data for 3 Serpens

Constellation: Serpens
Apparent magnitude: 5.32
Distance: 373.2 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 228.797° · Dec 4.939°
Catalogue: HIP 74649 · HD 135482

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

Other stars in Serpens

Serpens has 65 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 65 stars in Serpens