Star profile

Psi Sagittarii

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

What is Psi Sagittarii

ψ Sagittarii burns orange at 298 light-years, set against the silhouette of the Archer aiming his arrow at the heart of the Milky Way. A K-class giant well into stellar maturity, it sits exactly in the direction where the densest suns of the Galaxy gather. To look at it is also to look toward the galactic bulge — that golden swarm where the Milky Way's first stars were born.

Where it is and when to see it

Psi 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 July, when it culminates around midnight.

From London it culminates about 13° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 24° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 81° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere south of 65° N.

It ranks no. 35 in brightness among the 117 stars of Sagittarius in our catalogue. To find it, start from Kaus Australis, the brightest: it lies about 14° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 300 years ago.

Find it on the sky map

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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 Psi Sagittarii

Constellation: Sagittarius
Apparent magnitude: 4.86
Distance: 298.4 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 288.885° · Dec -25.257°
Catalogue: HIP 94643 · HD 179950

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Other stars in Sagittarius

Sagittarius has 117 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 117 stars in Sagittarius