τ Leonis (tau Leonis)

Above the horizon. Rise: 12:13 | Tran: 18:24 | Set: 0:36

Alt: 8.58° Az: 263.53° Direction: South-West

τ Leonis is a multiple giant star of spectral class G7 in the constellation of Leo.

τ Leonis visual magnitude is 4.95. Because of its moderate brightness, τ Leonis is easily visible to the naked eye from locations with dark skies, while it might be barely visible, or not visible at all, from light-polluted skies.

DSS2 image of τ Leonis. The red arrow shows the motion of τ Leonis during the next 10000 years (3.00 arcmin in Right Ascension and -2.00 arcmin in declination);

Celestial Coordinates

Apparent

Right Ascension 11h 29m 14s

Declination +02° 42’ 56”

Hour Angle 05h 18m 26s

Sidereal Time 16h 47m 41s

J2000

Right Ascension 11h 27m 56s

Declination +02° 51’ 21”

Galactic Coordinates

Galactic Longitude 259.9°

Galactic Latitude 58.57°

Finder Chart

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Finder chart for τ Leonis (tau Leonis).

Magnitude, Color, Spectral Class

Color ⬤

Magnitude 4.95

Class Giant

Absolute magnitude -1.45

Spectral Type G7III

Color Index (B-V) 1

Temperature 4743K

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

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

Star System Properties

τ Leonis is a visual double star which can be observed with binoculars or small telescopes. The table below shows key information about the τ Leonis double sysyem:

Main star magnitude 4.95

Secondary star magnitude 7.55

Magnitude difference 2.6

Separation 91.1 arcsec

Distance, Radial Speed, Proper Motion

τ Leonis is distant 620.95 light years from the Sun and it is moving towards the Sun at the speed of 9 kilometers per second.

Distance (parsec) 190.48

Distance (light year) 620.95

Radial Speed -9 km/s

Proper Motion RA 0.018 arcsec/y

Proper Motion Dec -0.012"/y

Alternative Designations

Bayer designation τ Leonis
(tau Leonis)

Flamsteed designation 84 Leonis

Henry Draper Catalogue HD99648

SAO Catalogue SAO118875

Hipparcos Catalogue HIP55945

Durchmusterung Catalogue BD+03 2504

FK5 Catalogue 1297

Visibility from Your Location

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

Azimuth: 87.3° RISE 12:13

Max altitude: 41.2° TRANSIT 18:24

Azimuth: 272.7° SET 0:36

Set Location

Other stars in Leo