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
sunny DaytimeWhat's Visible Now
All Constellations » Monoceros » 

γ Monocerotis (gamma Monocerotis)

Altitude: 32.2°   Azimuth: 176.4°   Direction: South

γ Monocerotis is a double giant star in the constellation of Monoceros.

γ Monocerotis visual magnitude is 3.98. Because of its moderate brightness, γ Monocerotis 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 γ Monocerotis:

3.98
Giant

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

Altitude: 32.2°
Azimuth: 176.4°
Direction: South

Celestial coordinates and finder chart of γ Monocerotis

γ Monocerotis 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 Monocerotis are provided in the following table:

06h 14m 51s
-06° 16’ 28”
214.4°
-10.98°
Monoceros

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

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

Visibility of γ Monocerotis 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 Monocerotis (gamma Monocerotis) 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: 96.3°
Max altitude: 32.2°
Azimuth: 263.7°
γ Monocerotis (gamma Monocerotis) is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom

Digitized Sky Survey image of γ Monocerotis

The image below is a photograph of γ Monocerotis 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 Monocerotis is -0.008 arcsec per year in Right Ascension and -0.019 arcsec per year in Declination and the associated displacement for the next 10000 years is represented with the red arrow.

Image of γ Monocerotis (gamma Monocerotis) star
DSS2 image of γ Monocerotis. The red arrow shows the motion of γ Monocerotis during the next 10000 years (-1.33 arcmin in Right Ascension and -3.17 arcmin in declination);

Distance of γ Monocerotis from the Sun and relative movement

γ Monocerotis is distant 644.27 light years from the Sun and it is moving towards the Sun at the speed of 5 kilometers per second.

197.63 pc
644.27 ly
-5 km/s
-0.008 arcsec/year
-0.019 arcsec/year

Spectral properties of γ Monocerotis

γ Monocerotis belongs to spectral class K1 and has a luminosity class of III corresponding to a giant star.

-2.50
K1III
4086K

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

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

γ Monocerotis star system properties

γ Monocerotis 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 Monocerotis double sysyem:

3.98
12.98
9
51.4 arcsec

Alternative designations of γ Monocerotis

γ Monocerotis
(gamma Monocerotis)
5 Monocerotis
SAO133012
SAO133012