Star profile
68 Herculis
Variable starWhat is 68 Herculis
68 Herculis is a blue variable star that pulses slowly within the body of Hercules, the kneeling hero of the northern sky. Its brightness shifts over time, a trait common to hot B-type giants stirred by violent internal processes. Its light crosses more than six hundred and sixty-five years before touching Earth; it set out at a time when telescopes did not yet exist and astronomy depended entirely on the human eye.
Where it is and when to see it
68 Herculis 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, when it culminates around midnight.
- From London it culminates about 72° above the horizon.
- From New York it culminates about 82° above the horizon.
- From Sydney it culminates about 23° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere north of 57° S.
It ranks no. 31 in brightness among the 136 stars of Hercules in our catalogue. To find it, start from Kornephoros, the brightest: it lies about 16° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 670 years ago.
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Astronomical data for 68 Herculis
- Constellation
- Hercules
- Apparent magnitude
- 4.80
- Distance
- 665.7 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 259.332° · Dec 33.100°
- Catalogue
- HIP 84573 · HD 156633
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Other stars in Hercules
Hercules has 136 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- KornephorosBeta Herculis2.78
- RasalgethiAlpha 1 Herculis2.78
- Zeta Herculis2.81
- 69 Herculis4.64
- 93 Herculis4.67
- Upsilon Herculis4.72
- 52 Herculis4.82
- 30 Herculis4.83