Star profile

Nu Fornax

Variable star

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

What is Nu Fornax

Nu Fornacis is a blue-white B-type variable star about 371 light-years away, in the modest constellation of the Furnace. Its brightness ripples gently because it pulsates in the manner of slowly pulsating B (SPB) stars, a class of medium-mass pulsators identified only in recent decades. Each cycle lasts hours or days, not years: this star breathes on an almost human timescale.

Where it is and when to see it

Nu Fornax lies in the southern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is October, when it culminates around midnight.

From London it culminates about 9° above the horizon.
From New York it culminates about 20° above the horizon.
From Sydney it culminates about 85° above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere south of 61° N.

It ranks no. 3 in brightness among the 26 stars of Fornax in our catalogue. To find it, start from Dalim, the brightest: it lies about 15° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 370 years ago.

Find it on the sky map

It opens in your browser. Free, no account, nothing to install.

Leave your signature on Nu Fornax

Your name and a message go up on the map for everyone to read. Signing is free.

Without a lock, someone else can replace your signature. How the lock works

We'll ask for an email to confirm it's you, no password.

Write my signature

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 Nu Fornax

Constellation: Fornax
Apparent magnitude: 4.68
Distance: 371.1 light years
Coordinates (J2000): RA 31.123° · Dec -29.297°
Catalogue: HIP 9677 · HD 12767

A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.

Other stars in Fornax

Fornax has 26 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 26 stars in Fornax