Your Guide to the Solar System and the Night Sky
This site is free and ad-free thanks to the support of our users. If you can, please consider a donation.
public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 6:46  
clear_day Transit: 12:51  
SunsetSet: 18:55 south
sunny DaytimeWhat's Visible Now
All Constellations » Hydra » 

γ Hydrae (gamma Hydrae)

Altitude: 4.3°   Azimuth: 136.6°   Direction: South-East

γ Hydrae is a variable and double giant star in the constellation of Hydra.

γ Hydrae visual magnitude is 3. Thanks to its high brightness, γ Hydrae is clearly visible when observed from locations with dark skyes, and should be also quite easily visible from light polluted areas.

The table below summarizes the key facts about γ Hydrae:

3
Giant

γ Hydrae (gamma Hydrae) is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.

Altitude: 4.3°
Azimuth: 136.6°
Direction: South-East

Celestial coordinates and finder chart of γ Hydrae

γ Hydrae 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 γ Hydrae are provided in the following table:

13h 18m 55s
-23° 10’ 18”
311.1°
39.26°
Hydra

The simplified sky map below shows the position of γ Hydrae in the sky:

Finder chart γ Hydrae (gamma Hydrae) star
Simplified finder chart for γ Hydrae (gamma Hydrae).

Visibility of γ Hydrae 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 γ Hydrae (gamma Hydrae) 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: 113.2°
Max altitude: 15.3°
Azimuth: 246.8°

Digitized Sky Survey image of γ Hydrae

The image below is a photograph of γ Hydrae 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 γ Hydrae is 0.064 arcsec per year in Right Ascension and -0.045 arcsec per year in Declination and the associated displacement for the next 10000 years is represented with the red arrow.

Image of γ Hydrae (gamma Hydrae) star
DSS2 image of γ Hydrae. The red arrow shows the motion of γ Hydrae during the next 10000 years (10.67 arcmin in Right Ascension and -7.50 arcmin in declination);

Distance of γ Hydrae from the Sun and relative movement

γ Hydrae is distant 132.04 light years from the Sun and it is moving towards the Sun at the speed of 5 kilometers per second.

40.50 pc
132.04 ly
-5 km/s
0.064 arcsec/year
-0.045 arcsec/year

Spectral properties of γ Hydrae

γ Hydrae belongs to spectral class G8 and has a luminosity class of III corresponding to a giant star.

-0.04
G8III
4943K

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

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

γ Hydrae star system properties

γ Hydrae is a visual double star which can be observed only with the help of very large telescopes. The table below shows key information about the γ Hydrae double sysyem:

3
9.7
6.7
138.4 arcsec

Alternative designations of γ Hydrae

γ Hydrae
(gamma Hydrae)
SAO181543
SAO181543