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: 4:49  
clear_day Transit: 12:56  
SunsetSet: 21:04 south
sunny DaytimeWhat's Visible Now
All Constellations » Leo » 

72 Leonis

72 Leonis is a variable bright giant star in the constellation of Leo.

72 Leonis visual magnitude is 4.63. Because of its moderate brightness, 72 Leonis 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 72 Leonis:

4.63
Bright giant
72 Leonis is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.

Celestial coordinates and finder chart of 72 Leonis

72 Leonis 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 72 Leonis are provided in the following table:

11h 15m 12s
+23° 05’ 44”
218.1°
67.88°
Leo

The simplified sky map below shows the position of 72 Leonis in the sky:

Finder chart 72 Leonis star
Simplified finder chart for 72 Leonis.

Visibility of 72 Leonis 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 72 Leonis 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: 66.9°
Max altitude: 61.6°
Azimuth: 293.1°
72 Leonis is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom

Digitized Sky Survey image of 72 Leonis

The image below is a photograph of 72 Leonis 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 72 Leonis is -0.024 arcsec per year in Right Ascension and -0.006 arcsec per year in Declination and the associated displacement for the next 10000 years is represented with the red arrow.

Image of 72 Leonis star
DSS2 image of 72 Leonis. The red arrow shows the motion of 72 Leonis during the next 10000 years (-4.00 arcmin in Right Ascension and -1.00 arcmin in declination);

Distance of 72 Leonis from the Sun and relative movement

72 Leonis is distant 6,653.06 light years from the Sun and it is moving far from the Sun at the speed of 16 kilometers per second.

2,040.82 pc
6,653.06 ly
16 km/s
-0.024 arcsec/year
-0.006 arcsec/year

Spectral properties of 72 Leonis

72 Leonis belongs to spectral class M3 and has a luminosity class of II corresponding to a bright giant star.

-6.92
M3II
3568K

The red dot in the diagram below shows where 72 Leonis is situated in the Hertzsprung–Russell diagram.

HR Diagram
H-R diagram showing the position of 72 Leonis. Attribution: Richard Powell / CC BY-SA

Alternative designations of 72 Leonis

SAO81736
SAO81736