Star profile

8 Cygni

Hot blue star

3D likeness based on its real data · class B · ~15,000 K

What is 8 Cygni

8 Cygni lies in the body of the Swan, about 860 light-years off, a blue B-type star riding the luminous summer band of the Milky Way. Its magnitude 4.74 corresponds to a body intrinsically thousands of times more luminous than the Sun, sustained by furious nuclear reactions. When this light began its flight, Galileo had only just turned his first spyglass on the sky.

Where it is and when to see it

8 Cygni lies in the northern 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 73° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 84° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 22° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere north of 56° S.

It ranks no. 30 in brightness among the 137 stars of Cygnus in our catalogue. To find it, start from Deneb, the brightest: it lies about 17° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 860 years ago.

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Astronomical data for 8 Cygni

Constellation: Cygnus
Apparent magnitude: 4.74
Distance: 860.7 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 292.943° · Dec 34.453°
Catalogue: HIP 96052 · HD 184171

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Other stars in Cygnus

Cygnus has 137 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 137 stars in Cygnus