Yellow-white subgiant · Horologium

μ Horologii

Also known as: μ Hor, HIP 14240

mag 5.1140 light-years

About

μ Horologii is a yellow-white subgiant of magnitude 5.1 in Horologium, about 140 light-years away.

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How to find it

  • μ Horologii is in the constellation Horologium.
  • Best evenings: around late December 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 20° N.

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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

Designationμ Horologii (μ Hor)
Hipparcos numberHIP 14240
TypeYellow-white subgiant
Spectral typeF0IV
ColourYellowish whiteB−V colour index 0.35
Magnitude5.1The smaller the number, the brighter.
Distance140 light-yearsThe light you see left it around 1880.
Proper motion0.097″ per year across the sky
ConstellationHorologium
Right ascension (J2000)03h 03m 36.9s
Declination (J2000)−59° 44′ 16″

Sources and credits

Star data: HYG Database by David Nash, CC BY-SA 4.0. All data sources →