We use cookies to deliver essential features and to measure their performance. Learn more.
Home
Search Objects
Major Solar System Objects
Comets
Asteroids
Spacecrafts
Star Maps
Orbits
public  Greenwich, UK Greenwich, UK  ⓘ
TimezoneEurope/London
Sunrise: 7:10 
Transit: 12:47 
Sunset: 18:24
sleep   (Nighttime)  
What's Visible Now • Tonight Timeline
Search  close
All Constellations » Eridanus » 

Achernar - α Eridani (alpha Eridani)

Below the horizon.  Never rises today
Alt: -18.62°   Az: 178.36°   Direction: South

Achernar, also designated as α Eridani (alpha Eridani), is a variable main-sequence star of spectral class B3 in the constellation of Eridanus.

Achernar visual magnitude is 0.46, making it the 9th brightest star in the sky. Because of its brightness, Achernar is clearly visible to the naked eye when observed from locations with dark skies, and should be also quite easily visible from light polluted areas.

Image of Achernar - α Eridani (alpha Eridani) star
DSS2 image of Achernar. The red arrow shows the motion of Achernar during the next 1000 years (1.58 arcmin in Right Ascension and -0.58 arcmin in declination);

Celestial Coordinates

Apparent

01h 38m 37s
-57° 06’ 40”
23h 48m 33s
01h 27m 10s

J2000

01h 37m 42s
-57° 14’ 12”

Galactic Coordinates

290.84°
-58.79°

Finder Chart

Finder chart Achernar - α Eridani (alpha Eridani) star
Simplified finder chart for Achernar - α Eridani (alpha Eridani).

Magnitude, Color, Spectral Class

0.46
Main-sequence

-2.76
B3V
12692K

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

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

Distance, Radial Speed, Proper Motion

Achernar is distant 143.74 light years from the Sun and it is moving far from the Sun at the speed of 16 kilometers per second.

44.09
143.74
16 km/s
0.095 arcsec/y
-0.035"/y

Alternative Designations

Achernar
α Eridani
(alpha Eridani)
SAO232481
SAO232481

Visibility from Your Location

Achernar - α Eridani (alpha Eridani) is currently not visible from Greenwich, UK