κ Centauri (kappa Centauri)

Altitude: -39.7° Azimuth: 110.8° Direction: East-South-East

κ Centauri is a variable and double sub-giant star in the constellation of Centaurus.

κ Centauri visual magnitude is 3.13. Because of its moderate brightness, κ Centauri 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 κ Centauri:

Color of κ Centauri ⬤

Magnitude of κ Centauri 3.13

Class Sub-giant

VISIBILITY RIGHT NOW

κ Centauri (kappa Centauri) is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.

Altitude: -39.7°
Azimuth: 110.8°
Direction: East-South-East

Celestial coordinates and finder chart of κ Centauri

κ Centauri is situated south of the celestial equator, as such, it is more easily visible from the southern hemisphere. Celestial coordinates for the J2000 equinox as well as galactic coordinates of κ Centauri are provided in the following table:

Right Ascension J2000 14h 59m 09s

Declination J2000 -42° 06’ 15”

Galactic Longitude 326.87°

Galactic Latitude 14.75°

Constellation Centaurus

The simplified sky map below shows the position of κ Centauri in the sky:

Finder chart κ Centauri (kappa Centauri) star

Simplified finder chart for κ Centauri (kappa Centauri).

Visibility of κ Centauri from your location

Location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
Latitude: 51° 28’ 47” N
Longitude: 0° 00’ 00” E
Timezone: Europe/London

κ Centauri (kappa Centauri) is currently not visible from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt

Digitized Sky Survey image of κ Centauri

The image below is a photograph of κ Centauri 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 κ Centauri is -0.019 arcsec per year in Right Ascension and -0.024 arcsec per year in Declination and the associated displacement for the next 10000 years is represented with the red arrow.

Image of κ Centauri (kappa Centauri) star

DSS2 image of κ Centauri. The red arrow shows the motion of κ Centauri during the next 10000 years (-3.17 arcmin in Right Ascension and -4.00 arcmin in declination);

Distance of κ Centauri from the Sun and relative movement

κ Centauri is distant 538.84 light years from the Sun and it is moving far from the Sun at the speed of 8 kilometers per second.

Distance (parsec) 165.29 pc

Distance (light year) 538.84 ly

Heliocentric radial velocity 8 km/s

Proper Motion RA -0.019 arcsec/year

Proper Motion Dec -0.024 arcsec/year

Spectral properties of κ Centauri

κ Centauri belongs to spectral class B2 and has a luminosity class of IV corresponding to a sub-giant star.

Absolute magnitude -2.96

Spectral Type B2IV

Color Index (B-V) -0.2

Temperature of κ Centauri 13585K

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

H-R diagram showing the position of κ Centauri. Attribution: Richard Powell / CC BY-SA

κ Centauri star system properties

κ Centauri 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 κ Centauri double sysyem:

Main star magnitude 3.13

Secondary star magnitude 11.23

Magnitude difference 8.1

Separation 3.9 arcsec

Alternative designations of κ Centauri

Bayer designation κ Centauri
(kappa Centauri)

Henry Draper Catalogue HD132200

SAO Catalogue SAO225344

Hipparcos Catalogue HIP73334

Durchmusterung Catalogue CD-41 9342

FK5 Catalogue 553

General Catalogue of Variable Stars 6873

In Evidence

Other stars in Centaurus