λ Centauri (lambda Centauri)

Altitude: -48.3° Azimuth: 137.8° Direction: South-East

λ Centauri is a double giant star in the constellation of Centaurus.

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

Color of λ Centauri ⬤

Magnitude of λ Centauri 3.13

Class Giant

VISIBILITY RIGHT NOW

λ Centauri (lambda Centauri) is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.

Altitude: -48.3°
Azimuth: 137.8°
Direction: South-East

Celestial coordinates and finder chart of λ Centauri

λ 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 λ Centauri are provided in the following table:

Right Ascension J2000 11h 35m 46s

Declination J2000 -63° 01’ 10”

Galactic Longitude 294.47°

Galactic Latitude -1.4°

Constellation Centaurus

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

Finder chart λ Centauri (lambda Centauri) star

Simplified finder chart for λ Centauri (lambda Centauri).

Visibility of λ Centauri from your location

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

λ Centauri (lambda Centauri) is currently not visible from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt

Digitized Sky Survey image of λ Centauri

The image below is a photograph of λ 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 λ Centauri is -0.041 arcsec per year in Right Ascension and -0.005 arcsec per year in Declination and the associated displacement for the next 10000 years is represented with the red arrow.

Image of λ Centauri (lambda Centauri) star

DSS2 image of λ Centauri. The red arrow shows the motion of λ Centauri during the next 10000 years (-6.83 arcmin in Right Ascension and -0.83 arcmin in declination);

Distance of λ Centauri from the Sun and relative movement

λ Centauri is distant 409.55 light years from the Sun and it is moving towards the Sun at the speed of 1 kilometers per second.

Distance (parsec) 125.63 pc

Distance (light year) 409.55 ly

Heliocentric radial velocity -1 km/s

Proper Motion RA -0.041 arcsec/year

Proper Motion Dec -0.005 arcsec/year

Spectral properties of λ Centauri

λ Centauri belongs to spectral class B9 and has a luminosity class of III corresponding to a giant star.

Absolute magnitude -2.37

Spectral Type B9III

Color Index (B-V) -0.04

Temperature of λ Centauri 10653K

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

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

λ Centauri star system properties

λ 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 λ Centauri double sysyem:

Main star magnitude 3.13

Secondary star magnitude 11.33

Magnitude difference 8.2

Separation 16.3 arcsec

Alternative designations of λ Centauri

Bayer designation λ Centauri
(lambda Centauri)

Henry Draper Catalogue HD100841

SAO Catalogue SAO251472

Hipparcos Catalogue HIP56561

Durchmusterung Catalogue CP-62 2127

FK5 Catalogue 436

In Evidence

Other stars in Centaurus