Blue-white main-sequence star · Musca
β Muscae
Also known as: β Mus, HIP 62322
mag 3.0340 light-years
About
β Muscae is a blue-white main-sequence star of magnitude 3.0 in Musca, about 340 light-years away.
How to find it
- β Muscae is in the constellation Musca.
- Best evenings: around mid-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 12° 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
- EyesVisible from the suburbs on a clear night, but lost in bright city skies.
- 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 | β Muscae (β Mus) |
|---|---|
| Hipparcos number | HIP 62322 |
| Type | Blue-white main-sequence star |
| Spectral type | B2V |
| Colour | Blue-whiteB−V colour index −0.18 |
| Magnitude | 3.0The smaller the number, the brighter. |
| Distance | 340 light-yearsThe light you see left it around 1680. |
| Proper motion | 0.042″ per year across the sky |
| Constellation | Musca |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 12h 46m 16.8s |
| Declination (J2000) | −68° 06′ 29″ |
Sources and credits
Star data: HYG Database by David Nash, CC BY-SA 4.0. All data sources →