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A Complete Guide to the Solar System and the Night Sky
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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 7:50  
clear_day Transit: 11:50  
SunsetSet: 15:49 south
sunny DaytimeWhat's Visible Now?
All Constellations » Draco » 

τ Draconis (tau Draconis)

Altitude: 58.7°   Azimuth: 26.5°   Direction: North-North-East

τ Draconis is a variable giant star in the constellation of Draco.

τ Draconis visual magnitude is 4.45. Because of its moderate brightness, τ Draconis 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 τ Draconis:

4.45
Giant

τ Draconis (tau Draconis) is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.

Altitude: 58.7°
Azimuth: 26.5°
Direction: North-North-East

Celestial coordinates and finder chart of τ Draconis

τ Draconis is situated close to the northern celestial pole and, as such, it is visible for most part of the year from the northern hemisphere. Celestial coordinates for the J2000 equinox as well as galactic coordinates of τ Draconis are provided in the following table:

19h 15m 33s
+73° 21’ 20”
104.73°
24.21°
Draco

The simplified sky map below shows the position of τ Draconis in the sky:

Finder chart τ Draconis (tau Draconis) star
Simplified finder chart for τ Draconis (tau Draconis).

Visibility of τ Draconis from your location

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

τ Draconis (tau Draconis) is circumpolar and transits at 14:07 UTC (altitude: 68.1°)

Digitized Sky Survey image of τ Draconis

The image below is a photograph of τ Draconis 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 τ Draconis is -0.14 arcsec per year in Right Ascension and 0.107 arcsec per year in Declination and the associated displacement for the next 1000 years is represented with the red arrow.

Image of τ Draconis (tau Draconis) star
DSS2 image of τ Draconis. The red arrow shows the motion of τ Draconis during the next 1000 years (-2.33 arcmin in Right Ascension and 1.78 arcmin in declination);

Distance of τ Draconis from the Sun and relative movement

τ Draconis is distant 150.02 light years from the Sun and it is moving towards the Sun at the speed of 30 kilometers per second.

46.02 pc
150.02 ly
-30 km/s
-0.14 arcsec/year
0.107 arcsec/year

Spectral properties of τ Draconis

τ Draconis belongs to spectral class K2 and has a luminosity class of III corresponding to a giant star.

1.14
K2III
4213K

The red dot in the diagram below shows where τ Draconis is situated in the Hertzsprung–Russell diagram.

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

Alternative designations of τ Draconis

τ Draconis
(tau Draconis)
60 Draconis
SAO9366
SAO9366