Yellow star
Xihe
Also known as: HIP 91852
mag 6.0460 light-years
About
Xihe is a yellow star of magnitude 6.0, about 460 light-years away.
How to find it
- Best evenings: around mid-August 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 43° 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 | Xihe |
|---|---|
| Hipparcos number | HIP 91852 |
| Type | Yellow star |
| Spectral type | G8 |
| Colour | Pale orangeB−V colour index 1.04 |
| Magnitude | 6.0The smaller the number, the brighter. |
| Distance | 460 light-yearsThe light you see left it around 1570. |
| Proper motion | 0.061″ per year across the sky |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 18h 43m 36.1s |
| Declination (J2000) | +36° 33′ 24″ |
Sources and credits
Star data: HYG Database by David Nash, CC BY-SA 4.0. All data sources →