σ Fornacis (sigma Fornacis)

Below the horizon. Rise: 9:53 | Tran: 12:53 | Set: 15:53

Alt: -64.33° Az: 323.33° Direction: North-West

σ Fornacis is a double main-sequence star of spectral class A3 in the constellation of Fornax.

σ Fornacis visual magnitude is 5.9. Because of its faintness, σ Fornacis is visible to the naked eye only from locations with very dark skies, while it is not visible at all from skies affected by light pollution.

Image of σ Fornacis (sigma Fornacis) star

DSS2 image of σ Fornacis. The red arrow shows the motion of σ Fornacis during the next 10000 years (0.67 arcmin in Right Ascension and 2.00 arcmin in declination);

Celestial Coordinates

Apparent

Right Ascension 03h 47m 29s

Declination -29° 15’ 38”

Hour Angle 10h 51m 00s

Sidereal Time 14h 38m 30s

J2000

Right Ascension 03h 46m 27s

Declination -29° 20’ 17”

Galactic Coordinates

Galactic Longitude 226.81°

Galactic Latitude -51.61°

Finder Chart

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Finder chart for σ Fornacis (sigma Fornacis).

Magnitude, Color, Spectral Class

Color ⬤

Magnitude 5.9

Class Main-sequence

Absolute magnitude 0.88

Spectral Type A3V

Color Index (B-V) 0.12

Temperature 8839K

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

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

Star System Properties

σ Fornacis is a visual double star which can be observed with the help of small or medium telescopes. The table below shows key information about the σ Fornacis double sysyem:

Main star magnitude 5.9

Secondary star magnitude 11.1

Magnitude difference 5.2

Separation 5 arcsec

Distance, Radial Speed, Proper Motion

σ Fornacis is distant 329.29 light years from the Sun and it is moving towards the Sun at the speed of 13 kilometers per second.

Distance (parsec) 101.01

Distance (light year) 329.29

Radial Speed -13 km/s

Proper Motion RA 0.004 arcsec/y

Proper Motion Dec 0.012"/y

Alternative Designations

Bayer designation σ Fornacis
(sigma Fornacis)

Henry Draper Catalogue HD23738

SAO Catalogue SAO168820

Hipparcos Catalogue HIP17618

Durchmusterung Catalogue CD-29 1413

Visibility from Your Location

Today's σ Fornacis (sigma Fornacis) rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, UK are the following (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 119.3° RISE 9:53

Max altitude: 9.3° TRANSIT 12:53

Azimuth: 240.7° SET 15:53

Set Location

Other stars in Fornax