Star profile

Maasym

Lambda Herculis · Hercules

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

What is Maasym

Maasym comes from the Arabic «al-miʿṣam», «the wrist», the joint that holds the club in the mythical figure of Hercules, the hero always portrayed with his twelve labours unfolding across the northern sky. It is an orange giant 369 light-years away, swollen by advanced stellar old age and considerably cooler than the Sun despite its brightness. When this light set out, the newly invented pendulum clocks were marking seconds with precision for the first time in the courts of Europe.

Where it is and when to see it

Maasym 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 65° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 75° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 30° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere north of 64° S.

It ranks no. 23 in brightness among the 136 stars of Hercules in our catalogue. To find it, start from Kornephoros, the brightest: it lies about 15° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 370 years ago.

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Astronomical data for Maasym

Constellation: Hercules
Apparent magnitude: 4.41
Distance: 369.4 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 262.685° · Dec 26.111°
Catalogue: HIP 85693 · HD 158899

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Other stars in Hercules

Hercules has 136 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 136 stars in Hercules