Star profile
Kappa Ophiuchi
Variable starWhat is Kappa Ophiuchi
Kappa Ophiuchi is an orange giant resting on the shoulder of the Serpent Bearer, some ninety-one light-years away from us. Its brightness shifts with discretion, as if hesitating between two shades of the same coppery hue. It belongs to a generation of evolved stars that have already left the main sequence and are quietly preparing, in no apparent hurry, for the final phases of stellar life. Its radius comfortably exceeds the Sun's, a swollen profile that announces a still peaceful old age.
Where it is and when to see it
Kappa Ophiuchi lies in the northern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is June: the Sun sits at the opposite point of the sky and the star culminates around midnight. How high it climbs above the horizon depends on the latitude you watch from.
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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 Kappa Ophiuchi
- Constellation
- Ophiuchus
- Apparent magnitude
- 3.19
- Distance
- 91.5 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 254.417° · Dec 9.375°
- Catalogue
- HIP 83000 · HD 153210
A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.
Other stars in Ophiuchus
Ophiuchus has 88 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- RasalhagueAlpha Ophiuchi2.08
- SabikEta Ophiuchi2.43
- Zeta Ophiuchi2.54
- Yed PriorDelta Ophiuchi2.73
- CebalraiBeta Ophiuchi2.76
- Yed PosteriorEpsilon Ophiuchi3.23
- Theta Ophiuchi3.27
- Nu Ophiuchi3.32