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A Complete Guide to the Solar System and the Night Sky
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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 7:54  
clear_day Transit: 11:51  
SunsetSet: 15:49 south
sunny DaytimeWhat's Visible Now?
All Constellations » Virgo » 

χ Virginis (chi Virginis)

Altitude: -7.6°   Azimuth: 266.7°   Direction: West

χ Virginis is a multiple giant star in the constellation of Virgo.

χ Virginis visual magnitude is 4.66. Because of its moderate brightness, χ Virginis 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 χ Virginis:

4.66
Giant

χ Virginis (chi Virginis) is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.

Altitude: -7.6°
Azimuth: 266.7°
Direction: West

Celestial coordinates and finder chart of χ Virginis

χ Virginis 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 χ Virginis are provided in the following table:

12h 39m 14s
-07° 59’ 44”
297.7°
54.75°
Virgo

The simplified sky map below shows the position of χ Virginis in the sky:

Finder chart χ Virginis (chi Virginis) star
Simplified finder chart for χ Virginis (chi Virginis).

Visibility of χ Virginis 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 χ Virginis (chi Virginis) 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: 98.0°
Max altitude: 30.5°
Azimuth: 262.0°

Digitized Sky Survey image of χ Virginis

The image below is a photograph of χ Virginis 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 χ Virginis is -0.076 arcsec per year in Right Ascension and -0.025 arcsec per year in Declination and the associated displacement for the next 10000 years is represented with the red arrow.

Image of χ Virginis (chi Virginis) star
DSS2 image of χ Virginis. The red arrow shows the motion of χ Virginis during the next 10000 years (-12.67 arcmin in Right Ascension and -4.17 arcmin in declination);

Distance of χ Virginis from the Sun and relative movement

χ Virginis is distant 318.36 light years from the Sun and it is moving towards the Sun at the speed of 20 kilometers per second.

97.66 pc
318.36 ly
-20 km/s
-0.076 arcsec/year
-0.025 arcsec/year

Spectral properties of χ Virginis

χ Virginis belongs to spectral class K2 and has a luminosity class of III corresponding to a giant star.

-0.29
K2III
4251K

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

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

χ Virginis star system properties

χ Virginis 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 χ Virginis double sysyem:

4.66
8.96
4.3
173.1 arcsec

Alternative designations of χ Virginis

χ Virginis
(chi Virginis)
26 Virginis
SAO138892
SAO138892