Blue-white subgiant · Aquarius
η Aquarii
Also known as: η Aqr, HIP 111497
mag 4.0170 light-years
About
η Aquarii is a blue-white subgiant of magnitude 4.0 in Aquarius, about 170 light-years away.
How to find it
- η Aquarii is in the constellation Aquarius.
- Best evenings: around mid-October 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 80° 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 Aquarii (η Aqr) |
|---|---|
| Hipparcos number | HIP 111497 |
| Type | Blue-white subgiant |
| Spectral type | B9IV-Vn |
| Colour | WhiteB−V colour index −0.08 |
| Magnitude | 4.0The smaller the number, the brighter. |
| Distance | 170 light-yearsThe light you see left it around 1860. |
| Proper motion | 0.10″ per year across the sky |
| Constellation | Aquarius |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 22h 35m 21.4s |
| Declination (J2000) | −00° 07′ 03″ |
Sources and credits
Star data: HYG Database by David Nash, CC BY-SA 4.0. All data sources →