Yellow giant · Crater
ζ Crateris
Also known as: ζ Crt, HIP 57283
mag 4.7350 light-years
About
ζ Crateris is a yellow giant of magnitude 4.7 in Crater, about 350 light-years away.
How to find it
- ζ Crateris is in the constellation Crater.
- Best evenings: around early May 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 south of 62° N.
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
- EyesNeeds a dark sky away from city lights.
- 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
| Designation | ζ Crateris (ζ Crt) |
|---|---|
| Hipparcos number | HIP 57283 |
| Type | Yellow giant |
| Spectral type | G8III |
| Colour | Pale orangeB−V colour index 0.96 |
| Magnitude | 4.7The smaller the number, the brighter. |
| Distance | 350 light-yearsThe light you see left it around 1670. |
| Proper motion | 0.037″ per year across the sky |
| Constellation | Crater |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 11h 44m 45.8s |
| Declination (J2000) | −18° 21′ 03″ |
Sources and credits
Star data: HYG Database by David Nash, CC BY-SA 4.0. All data sources →