Star profile

Zeta 2 Scorpii

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

What is Zeta 2 Scorpii

ζ² Scorpii deceives the eye. It appears to keep company with its brilliant neighbour ζ¹, yet it sits much closer to us —only 132 light-years away, against the thousands that separate the other. It is an orange giant about six billion years old, swollen to nineteen solar diameters and still radiating 130 times the Sun's light. A pair only in perspective.

Where it is and when to see it

Zeta 2 Scorpii lies in the southern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is June, when it culminates around midnight.

From London it never rises above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 7° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 82° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere south of 48° N.

It ranks no. 17 in brightness among the 104 stars of Scorpius in our catalogue. To find it, start from Antares, the brightest: it lies about 17° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 130 years ago.

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Astronomical data for Zeta 2 Scorpii

Constellation: Scorpius
Apparent magnitude: 3.62
Distance: 132.3 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 253.646° · Dec -42.361°
Catalogue: HIP 82729 · HD 152334

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Other stars in Scorpius

Scorpius has 104 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 104 stars in Scorpius