Your Guide to the Solar System and the Night Sky
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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 4:50  
clear_day Transit: 12:56  
SunsetSet: 21:03 south
wb_twilight Astronomical TwilightWhat's Visible Now
All Constellations » Centaurus » 

3 Centauri

3 Centauri is a double main-sequence star in the constellation of Centaurus.

3 Centauri visual magnitude is 6.06. Because of its reltive faintness, 3 Centauri should be visible only from locations with dark skyes, while it is not visible at all from skyes affected by light pollution.

The table below summarizes the key facts about 3 Centauri:

6.06
Main-sequence
3 Centauri is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.

Celestial coordinates and finder chart of 3 Centauri

3 Centauri is situated south of the celestial equator, as such, it is more easily visible from the southern hemisphere. Celestial coordinates for the J2000 equinox as well as galactic coordinates of 3 Centauri are provided in the following table:

13h 51m 50s
-32° 59’ 40”
317.28°
28.19°
Centaurus

The simplified sky map below shows the position of 3 Centauri in the sky:

Finder chart 3 Centauri star
Simplified finder chart for 3 Centauri.

Visibility of 3 Centauri from your location

Location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
Latitude: 51° 28’ 47” N
Longitude: 0° 00’ 00” E
Timezone: Europe/London

Today's 3 Centauri rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt are the following (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 123.0°
Max altitude: 5.5°
Azimuth: 237.0°
3 Centauri is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom

Digitized Sky Survey image of 3 Centauri

The image below is a photograph of 3 Centauri from the Digitized Sky Survey 2 (DSS2 - see the credits section) taken in the red channel. The area of sky represented in the image is 0.5x0.5 degrees (30x30 arcmins). The proper motion of 3 Centauri is -0.056 arcsec per year in Right Ascension and -0.027 arcsec per year in Declination and the associated displacement for the next 10000 years is represented with the red arrow.

Image of 3 Centauri star
DSS2 image of 3 Centauri. The red arrow shows the motion of 3 Centauri during the next 10000 years (-9.33 arcmin in Right Ascension and -4.50 arcmin in declination);

Spectral properties of 3 Centauri

3 Centauri belongs to spectral class B8 and has a luminosity class of V corresponding to a main-sequence star.

B8V
10653K

3 Centauri star system properties

3 Centauri is a visual double star which can be observed with the help of small or medium telescopes. The table below shows key information about the 3 Centauri double sysyem:

6.06
7.56
1.5
7.9 arcsec

Alternative designations of 3 Centauri

SAO204917
SAO204917