Star profile

Arkab Posterior

Beta 2 Sagittarii · Sagittarius

3D likeness based on its real data · class F · ~6,500 K

What is Arkab Posterior

Arkab Posterior is the «rear» of the Arkab pair in Sagittarius; the name, in Arabic, refers to the tendon joining the archer's leg to his bow. It is a yellow-white star 134 light-years away, part of a double asterism the naked eye barely separates. Its light crossed space during the entire period in which photography travelled from the daguerreotype to the digital sensor.

Where it is and when to see it

Arkab Posterior 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 never rises above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 5° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 79° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere south of 45° N.

It ranks no. 18 in brightness among the 117 stars of Sagittarius in our catalogue. To find it, start from Kaus Australis, the brightest: it lies about 15° 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 Arkab Posterior

Constellation: Sagittarius
Apparent magnitude: 4.27
Distance: 134.2 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 290.805° · Dec -44.800°
Catalogue: HIP 95294 · HD 181623

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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