Star profile
HIP 87314
Variable starWhat is HIP 87314
In Ara, the austral altar kindled by the Olympian gods, pulses a blue variable B-type star nearly a thousand light-years away. Its light set out around the turn of the first millennium, when Europe feared the end of the world in the year one thousand and the skies were observed in an apocalyptic spirit. Far hotter than the Sun and of fluctuating brightness, its flame resembles the living offering of the mythic altar itself, swinging between blaze and calm.
Where it is and when to see it
HIP 87314 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 never rises above the horizon.
- From Sydney it culminates about 70° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 36° N.
It ranks no. 23 in brightness among the 43 stars of Ara in our catalogue. To find it, start from Beta Ara, the brightest: it lies about 4° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 990 years ago.
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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 HIP 87314
- Constellation
- Ara
- Apparent magnitude
- 5.68
- Distance
- 988.5 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 267.618° · Dec -53.612°
- Catalogue
- HIP 87314 · HD 161783
A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.
Other stars in Ara
Ara has 43 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- Beta Ara2.84
- Alpha Ara2.84
- Zeta Ara3.12
- HIP 817025.57
- HIP 817335.62
- HIP 831875.64
- HIP 851475.69
- HIP 854705.72