Star profile
Gamma 1 Sagittarii
Variable starWhat is Gamma 1 Sagittarii
Gamma-1 Sagittarii is an exceptional star: a pulsating yellow supergiant of the classical Cepheid class, also catalogued as W Sagittarii, whose brightness varies with a strict rhythm that turns it into a cosmic calibration beacon. At 870 light-years it forms a triple system with two warmer companions. Cepheids like this are the clocks that let Hubble measure the scale of the universe in the 1920s.
Where it is and when to see it
Gamma 1 Sagittarii 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 9° above the horizon.
- From New York it culminates about 20° above the horizon.
- From Sydney it culminates about 86° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 60° N.
It ranks no. 26 in brightness among the 117 stars of Sagittarius in our catalogue. To find it, start from Kaus Australis, the brightest: it lies about 6° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 870 years ago.
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Astronomical data for Gamma 1 Sagittarii
- Constellation
- Sagittarius
- Apparent magnitude
- 4.66
- Distance
- 869.9 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 271.255° · Dec -29.580°
- Catalogue
- HIP 88567 · HD 164975
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Other stars in Sagittarius
Sagittarius has 117 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- Kaus AustralisEpsilon Sagittarii1.79
- NunkiSigma Sagittarii2.05
- AscellaZeta Sagittarii2.60
- 59 Sagittarii4.54
- HIP 888394.55
- 52 Sagittarii4.59
- HIP 896784.66
- TerebellumOmega Sagittarii4.70