
Star profile
Meridiana
Alpha Coronae Australis · Corona Australis
What is Meridiana
Meridiana crowns the small Southern Crown, a white A-type star 125 light-years away. The constellation is modest but ancient, already named by Ptolemy, and the ancients pictured it as a wreath fallen at the feet of the neighbouring centaur. Its Latin name evokes midday and the meridian line of the sky. Meridiana's light travels in silence for a century and a quarter before settling on the human eye — almost a direct echo of the nineteenth century.
Where it is and when to see it
Meridiana lies in the southern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is July, when it culminates around midnight.
- From London it culminates about 1° above the horizon.
- From New York it culminates about 11° above the horizon.
- From Sydney it culminates about 86° above the horizon.
It can be seen from anywhere south of 52° N.
It ranks no. 2 in brightness among the 29 stars of Corona Australis in our catalogue. To find it, start from Beta Coronae Australis, the brightest: it lies about 1° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).
The light you see today left it about 130 years ago.
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Astronomical data for Meridiana
- Constellation
- Corona Australis
- Apparent magnitude
- 4.11
- Distance
- 125.4 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 287.368° · Dec -37.904°
- Catalogue
- HIP 94114 · HD 178253
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Other stars in Corona Australis
Corona Australis has 29 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- Beta Coronae Australis4.10
- Gamma Coronae Australis4.23
- Delta Coronae Australis4.57
- Theta Coronae Australis4.62
- Zeta Coronae Australis4.74
- Epsilon Coronae Australis4.83
- HIP 887264.92
- Gamma Coronae Australis5.00