Mimosa
Where is Mimosa?
Below the horizon from London all the time in Crux.
- Rises
- Never
- Highest
- —
- Sets
- —
- Best after dark
- —
Can I see Mimosa tonight?
Mimosa never rises from London: it is too far south in the sky for this latitude.
This is position and timing only: clouds, haze and light pollution aren’t included.
What does Mimosa look like?
Mimosa looks blue-white to the eye. Its spectral type is B1IV: hot blue-white subgiant (much hotter than the Sun).
Eyes
A bright blue-white star at the left arm of the Southern Cross (when the Cross stands upright).
Binoculars
The Jewel Box cluster appears as a small, bright knot of stars just next to Mimosa.
Telescope
A bright point. Turn to the Jewel Box for a mix of blue-white and orange stars.
About Mimosa
Mimosa, also called Beta Crucis, is the second-brightest star in the Southern Cross. It is a hot blue giant about 280 light-years away, thousands of times more luminous than the Sun.
It marks the eastern arm of the Cross. Close by lies the Jewel Box, a colorful star cluster that is a favorite of southern observers.
Mimosa is around 15 times the mass of the Sun and tens of thousands of times as luminous. It pulses slightly in brightness over a few hours, too little to notice by eye.
The Jewel Box, also called NGC 4755, is a young open cluster about 6,000 light-years away, far beyond Mimosa. John Herschel named it after its mix of colored stars, which reminded him of a casket of jewels.
Mimosa, like the other bright stars of the Cross, appears on the flags of several southern nations.
Mimosa in Crux
Questions
Where is the Jewel Box cluster?
Sources: SkyMate; Wikidata (CC0). Positions computed for your place and time with astronomy-engine. Data & Licences