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: 6:46  
clear_day Transit: 12:51  
SunsetSet: 18:55 south
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All Constellations » Ara » 

σ Arae (sigma Arae)

Altitude: -74.5°   Azimuth: 279.8°   Direction: West

σ Arae is a hypergiant star in the constellation of Ara.

σ Arae visual magnitude is 4.59. Because of its moderate brightness, σ Arae 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 σ Arae:

4.59
Hypergiant

σ Arae (sigma Arae) is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.

Altitude: -74.5°
Azimuth: 279.8°
Direction: West

Celestial coordinates and finder chart of σ Arae

σ Arae 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 σ Arae are provided in the following table:

17h 35m 39s
-46° 30’ 20”
343.98°
-7.58°
Ara

The simplified sky map below shows the position of σ Arae in the sky:

Finder chart σ Arae (sigma Arae) star
Simplified finder chart for σ Arae (sigma Arae).

Visibility of σ Arae from your location

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

σ Arae (sigma Arae) is currently not visible from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt

Digitized Sky Survey image of σ Arae

The image below is a photograph of σ Arae 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 σ Arae is -0.028 arcsec per year in Right Ascension and -0.035 arcsec per year in Declination and the associated displacement for the next 10000 years is represented with the red arrow.

Image of σ Arae (sigma Arae) star
DSS2 image of σ Arae. The red arrow shows the motion of σ Arae during the next 10000 years (-4.67 arcmin in Right Ascension and -5.83 arcmin in declination);

Distance of σ Arae from the Sun and relative movement

σ Arae is distant 385.34 light years from the Sun and it is moving far from the Sun at the speed of 4 kilometers per second.

118.20 pc
385.34 ly
4 km/s
-0.028 arcsec/year
-0.035 arcsec/year

Spectral properties of σ Arae

σ Arae belongs to spectral class A0 and has a luminosity class of V corresponding to a hypergiant star.

-0.77
A0V
10516K

The red dot in the diagram below shows where σ Arae is situated in the Hertzsprung–Russell diagram.

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

Alternative designations of σ Arae

σ Arae
(sigma Arae)
SAO228162
SAO228162