Star profile
HIP 78246
Variable starWhat is HIP 78246
A blue variable on the sting of Scorpius. Pulsating B-type stars like this one beat because their atmosphere never settles into equilibrium between gravity and radiation pressure. At 555 light-years, its light left around the year Cortés reached Tenochtitlán and two worlds first set eyes on one another.
Where it is and when to see it
HIP 78246 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 14° above the horizon.
- From New York it culminates about 24° above the horizon.
- From Sydney it culminates about 81° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 65° N.
It ranks no. 55 in brightness among the 104 stars of Scorpius in our catalogue. To find it, start from Antares, the brightest: it lies about 7° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 560 years ago.
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Leave your signature on HIP 78246
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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 HIP 78246
- Constellation
- Scorpius
- Apparent magnitude
- 5.43
- Distance
- 555.7 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 239.645° · Dec -24.831°
- Catalogue
- HIP 78246 · HD 142990
A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.
Other stars in Scorpius
Scorpius has 104 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- AntaresAlpha Scorpii1.06
- ShaulaLambda Scorpii1.62
- SargasTheta Scorpii1.86
- HIP 803995.40
- HIP 778595.41
- HIP 803905.42
- 16 Scorpii5.43
- HIP 813055.46