Star profile

30 Ophiuchi

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

What is 30 Ophiuchi

30 Ophiuchi is an orange giant 405 light-years away, a K-type star that has burned through its core hydrogen and is swelling toward maturity. It lives in Ophiuchus, the vast constellation mythology ties to the healer Asclepius, crossed by the ecliptic and by dark dust clouds where new stars are forming. Its light departed near the end of the sixteenth century, before Galileo first pointed his telescope skyward.

Where it is and when to see it

30 Ophiuchi 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 culminates about 34° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 45° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 60° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere south of 86° N.

It ranks no. 37 in brightness among the 88 stars of Ophiuchus in our catalogue. To find it, start from Rasalhague, the brightest: it lies about 19° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 410 years ago.

Find it on the sky map

It opens in your browser. Free, no account, nothing to install.

Leave your signature on 30 Ophiuchi

Your name and a message go up on the map for everyone to read. Signing is free.

Without a lock, someone else can replace your signature. How the lock works

We'll ask for an email to confirm it's you, no password.

Write my signature

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 30 Ophiuchi

Constellation: Ophiuchus
Apparent magnitude: 4.82
Distance: 405.2 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 255.265° · Dec -4.223°
Catalogue: HIP 83262 · HD 153687

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.

See all 88 stars in Ophiuchus