Yellow-white supergiant · Aquila
η Aquilae
Also known as: η Aql, HIP 97804
mag 3.91,400 light-years
About
η Aquilae is a yellow-white supergiant of magnitude 3.9 in Aquila, about 1,400 light-years away.
How to find it
- η Aquilae is in the constellation Aquila.
- Best evenings: around early September 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 north of 79° S.
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 Aquilae (η Aql) |
|---|---|
| Hipparcos number | HIP 97804 |
| Type | Yellow-white supergiant |
| Spectral type | F6Ibv SB |
| Colour | YellowB−V colour index 0.63 |
| Magnitude | 3.9The smaller the number, the brighter. |
| Distance | 1,400 light-yearsThe light you see left it around AD 600. Distances this large are uncertain by 10% or more. |
| Proper motion | 0.010″ per year across the sky |
| Constellation | Aquila |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 19h 52m 28.4s |
| Declination (J2000) | +01° 00′ 21″ |
Sources and credits
Star data: HYG Database by David Nash, CC BY-SA 4.0. All data sources →