Your guide to the Solar System and the night sky
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🌎  Observing from: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]
🌅 Sunrise: 5:59  ☀️ Transit: 12:05  🌅 Sunset: 18:13

ξ1 Canis Majoris (xi1 Canis Majoris)

ξ1 Canis Majoris is a variable and multiple hypergiant star in the constellation of Canis Major.

ξ1 Canis Majoris visual magnitude is 4.33. Because of its moderate brightness, ξ1 Canis Majoris 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 ξ1 Canis Majoris:

4.33
Hypergiant
ξ1 Canis Majoris (xi1 Canis Majoris) is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change].

Celestial coordinates and finder chart of ξ1 Canis Majoris

ξ1 Canis Majoris is situated close to the celestial equator, as such, it is at least partly visible from both hemispheres in certain times of the year. Celestial coordinates for the J2000 equinox as well as galactic coordinates of ξ1 Canis Majoris are provided in the following table:

06h 31m 51s
-23° 25’ 05”
232.11°
-14.53°
Canis Major

The simplified sky map below shows the position of ξ1 Canis Majoris in the sky:

Finder chart ξ1 Canis Majoris (xi1 Canis Majoris) star
Simplified finder chart for ξ1 Canis Majoris (xi1 Canis Majoris).

Visibility of ξ1 Canis Majoris from your location

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

Today's ξ1 Canis Majoris (xi1 Canis Majoris) rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change] are the following (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 113.4°
Max altitude: 15.1°
Azimuth: 246.6°
ξ1 Canis Majoris (xi1 Canis Majoris) is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom

Digitized Sky Survey image of ξ1 Canis Majoris

The image below is a photograph of ξ1 Canis Majoris 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 ξ1 Canis Majoris is -0.006 arcsec per year in Right Ascension and 0.012 arcsec per year in Declination and the associated displacement for the next 10000 years is represented with the red arrow.

Image of ξ1 Canis Majoris (xi1 Canis Majoris) star
DSS2 image of ξ1 Canis Majoris. The red arrow shows the motion of ξ1 Canis Majoris during the next 10000 years (-1.00 arcmin in Right Ascension and 2.00 arcmin in declination);

Distance of ξ1 Canis Majoris from the Sun and relative movement

ξ1 Canis Majoris is distant 2,050.31 light years from the Sun and it is moving far from the Sun at the speed of 27 kilometers per second.

628.93 pc
2,050.31 ly
27 km/s
-0.006 arcsec/year
0.012 arcsec/year

Spectral properties of ξ1 Canis Majoris

ξ1 Canis Majoris belongs to spectral class B0 and has a luminosity class of IV corresponding to a hypergiant star.

-4.66
B0IV
14633K

The red dot in the diagram below shows where ξ1 Canis Majoris is situated in the Hertzsprung–Russell diagram.

HR Diagram
H-R diagram showing the position of ξ1 Canis Majoris. Attribution: Richard Powell / CC BY-SA

ξ1 Canis Majoris star system properties

ξ1 Canis Majoris is a visual double star which can be observed only with the help of very large telescopes. The table below shows key information about the ξ1 Canis Majoris double sysyem:

4.33
13.93
9.6
24.6 arcsec

Alternative designations of ξ1 Canis Majoris

ξ1 Canis Majoris
(xi1 Canis Majoris)
4 Canis Majoris
SAO171895
SAO171895