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: 6:44  
clear_day Transit: 12:51  
SunsetSet: 18:57 south
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All Constellations » Cepheus » 

θ Cephei (theta Cephei)

Altitude: 27.0°   Azimuth: 15.1°   Direction: North-North-East

θ Cephei is a giant star in the constellation of Cepheus.

θ Cephei visual magnitude is 4.22. Because of its moderate brightness, θ Cephei 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 θ Cephei:

4.22
Giant

θ Cephei (theta Cephei) is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.

Altitude: 27.0°
Azimuth: 15.1°
Direction: North-North-East

Celestial coordinates and finder chart of θ Cephei

θ Cephei 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 θ Cephei are provided in the following table:

20h 29m 34s
+62° 59’ 39”
97.76°
13.8°
Cepheus

The simplified sky map below shows the position of θ Cephei in the sky:

Finder chart θ Cephei (theta Cephei) star
Simplified finder chart for θ Cephei (theta Cephei).

Visibility of θ Cephei from your location

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

θ Cephei (theta Cephei) is circumpolar and transits at 20:23 UTC (altitude: 78.5°)

Digitized Sky Survey image of θ Cephei

The image below is a photograph of θ Cephei 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 θ Cephei is 0.044 arcsec per year in Right Ascension and -0.013 arcsec per year in Declination and the associated displacement for the next 10000 years is represented with the red arrow.

Image of θ Cephei (theta Cephei) star
DSS2 image of θ Cephei. The red arrow shows the motion of θ Cephei during the next 10000 years (7.33 arcmin in Right Ascension and -2.17 arcmin in declination);

Distance of θ Cephei from the Sun and relative movement

θ Cephei is distant 135.61 light years from the Sun and it is moving towards the Sun at the speed of 7 kilometers per second.

41.60 pc
135.61 ly
-7 km/s
0.044 arcsec/year
-0.013 arcsec/year

Spectral properties of θ Cephei

θ Cephei belongs to spectral class A7 and has a luminosity class of III corresponding to a giant star.

1.12
A7III
8163K

The red dot in the diagram below shows where θ Cephei is situated in the Hertzsprung–Russell diagram.

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

Alternative designations of θ Cephei

θ Cephei
(theta Cephei)
SAO18897
SAO18897