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: 4:44  
clear_day Transit: 12:57  
SunsetSet: 21:11 south
wb_twilight Astronomical TwilightWhat's Visible Now
All Constellations » Orion » 

42 Orionis

Altitude: -37.9°   Azimuth: 323.7°   Direction: North-West

42 Orionis is a variable and double main-sequence star in the constellation of Orion.

42 Orionis visual magnitude is 4.59. Because of its moderate brightness, 42 Orionis should be easily visible from locations with dark skyes, while it can be barely visible, or not visible at all, from skyes affected by light pollution.

The table below summarizes the key facts about 42 Orionis:

4.59
Main-sequence

42 Orionis is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.

Altitude: -37.9°
Azimuth: 323.7°
Direction: North-West

Celestial coordinates and finder chart of 42 Orionis

42 Orionis is situated close to the celestial equator, as such, it is at least partly visible from both hemispheres in certain times of the year. Celestial coordinates for the J2000 equinox as well as galactic coordinates of 42 Orionis are provided in the following table:

05h 35m 23s
-04° 50’ 17”
208.5°
-19.11°
Orion

The simplified sky map below shows the position of 42 Orionis in the sky:

Finder chart 42 Orionis star
Simplified finder chart for 42 Orionis.

Visibility of 42 Orionis 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 42 Orionis 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: 94.8°
Max altitude: 33.7°
Azimuth: 265.2°
42 Orionis is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom

Digitized Sky Survey image of 42 Orionis

The image below is a photograph of 42 Orionis 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 42 Orionis is 0.004 arcsec per year in Right Ascension and 0 arcsec per year in Declination and the associated displacement for the next 100000 years is represented with the red arrow.

Image of 42 Orionis star
DSS2 image of 42 Orionis. The red arrow shows the motion of 42 Orionis during the next 100000 years (6.67 arcmin in Right Ascension and 0.00 arcmin in declination);

Distance of 42 Orionis from the Sun and relative movement

42 Orionis is distant 785.54 light years from the Sun and it is moving far from the Sun at the speed of 30 kilometers per second.

240.96 pc
785.54 ly
30 km/s
0.004 arcsec/year

Spectral properties of 42 Orionis

42 Orionis belongs to spectral class B1 and has a luminosity class of V corresponding to a main-sequence star.

-2.32
B1V
13348K

The red dot in the diagram below shows where 42 Orionis is situated in the Hertzsprung–Russell diagram.

HR Diagram
H-R diagram showing the position of 42 Orionis. Attribution: Richard Powell / CC BY-SA

42 Orionis star system properties

42 Orionis is a visual double star which can be observed with the help of medium or large telescopes. The table below shows key information about the 42 Orionis double sysyem:

4.59
7.79
3.2
1.5 arcsec

Alternative designations of 42 Orionis

SAO132320
SAO132320