Orange giant · Pavo
η Pavonis
Also known as: η Pav, HIP 86929
mag 3.6350 light-years
About
η Pavonis is an orange giant of magnitude 3.6 in Pavo, about 350 light-years away.
How to find it
- η Pavonis is in the constellation Pavo.
- Best evenings: around early 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 south of 15° 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 | η Pavonis (η Pav) |
|---|---|
| Hipparcos number | HIP 86929 |
| Type | Orange giant |
| Spectral type | K1III |
| Colour | Pale orangeB−V colour index 1.16 |
| Magnitude | 3.6The smaller the number, the brighter. |
| Distance | 350 light-yearsThe light you see left it around 1670. |
| Proper motion | 0.057″ per year across the sky |
| Constellation | Pavo |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 17h 45m 44.0s |
| Declination (J2000) | −64° 43′ 26″ |
Sources and credits
Star data: HYG Database by David Nash, CC BY-SA 4.0. All data sources →