Orange giant
Mago
Also known as: HIP 24003
mag 6.4390 light-years
About
Mago is an orange giant of magnitude 6.4, about 390 light-years away.
How to find it
- Best evenings: around late January it is highest at about 9 pm (10 pm in summer time); a month earlier, two hours later.
- Where on Earth: it is seen well, at least 10° up, from north of 10° S.
When it rises and sets tonight, how high it climbs and how much the Moon gets in the way are worked out in your browser for your place.
What you will see
- EyesAt the very limit of the naked eye; binoculars show it easily.
- Binoculars (10×50)A sharp point; binoculars bring out its colour and the fainter stars around it.
- Telescope (6–8 inch)Still a point of light at any magnification — stars are too far away to show a disc. Low in the sky, bright stars twinkle and flash colours.
Stars look the same in any instrument: brighter and sharper, but never bigger.
Facts
| Proper name | Mago |
|---|---|
| Hipparcos number | HIP 24003 |
| Type | Orange giant |
| Spectral type | K1III |
| Colour | Pale orangeB−V colour index 1.10 |
| Magnitude | 6.4The smaller the number, the brighter. |
| Distance | 390 light-yearsThe light you see left it around 1630. |
| Proper motion | 0.088″ per year across the sky |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 05h 09m 36.6s |
| Declination (J2000) | +69° 38′ 22″ |
Sources and credits
Star data: HYG Database by David Nash, CC BY-SA 4.0. All data sources →