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: the Sun sits at the opposite point of the sky and the star culminates around midnight. How high it climbs above the horizon depends on the latitude you watch from.
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The signature wall
Stelvia's sky works like a signature wall: anyone can leave their name and a message on a real star, and that signature goes up on the map for everyone to read. Signing is free.
A signature without a lock can be replaced by someone else's. The lock makes the signature permanent and lets you choose a symbolic name for the star, always shown next to the star's catalogue identifier. How the lock works
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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 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
A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.
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