Star profile

Zubeneschamali

Beta Librae · Libra

Hot blue star

3D likeness based on its real data · class B · ~15,000 K

What is Zubeneschamali

Zubeneschamali, «the northern claw» of Scorpius for the old Arab astronomers, now belongs to Libra, the scales that Rome carved out by detaching that claw from the celestial beast. A hot B-class star 185 light years away, it holds an almost unique distinction: many observers across the centuries have described its tint as faintly green, a colour all but absent from the stellar catalogue.

Where it is and when to see it

Zubeneschamali 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 culminates about 29° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 40° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 65° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere south of 81° N.

It is the brightest of the 49 stars of Libra in our catalogue, which makes it the best starting point for finding your way around the constellation.

The light you see today left it about 190 years ago.

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Astronomical data for Zubeneschamali

Constellation: Libra
Apparent magnitude: 2.61
Distance: 185.1 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 229.252° · Dec -9.383°
Catalogue: HIP 74785 · HD 135742

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Other stars in Libra

Libra has 49 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 49 stars in Libra