Blue-white giant · Puppis
ν Puppis
Also known as: ν Pup, HIP 31685
mag 3.2370 light-years
About
ν Puppis is a blue-white giant of magnitude 3.2 in Puppis, about 370 light-years away.
How to find it
- ν Puppis is in the constellation Puppis.
- Best evenings: around mid-February 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 37° 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 | ν Puppis (ν Pup) |
|---|---|
| Hipparcos number | HIP 31685 |
| Type | Blue-white giant |
| Spectral type | B8III SB |
| Colour | WhiteB−V colour index −0.10 |
| Magnitude | 3.2The smaller the number, the brighter. |
| Distance | 370 light-yearsThe light you see left it around 1660. |
| Proper motion | 0.004″ per year across the sky |
| Constellation | Puppis |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 06h 37m 45.7s |
| Declination (J2000) | −43° 11′ 45″ |
Sources and credits
Star data: HYG Database by David Nash, CC BY-SA 4.0. All data sources →