Star · Yellow · Centaurus

Rigil Kentaurus

HIP 71683

Not above the horizon after darkNever rises from London

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Where is Rigil Kentaurus?

Times for LondonChange city

Below the horizon from London all the time in Centaurus.

Rises: Never
Highest: —
Sets: —
Best after dark: —

Can I see Rigil Kentaurus tonight?

Rigil Kentaurus 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 Rigil Kentaurus look like?

Rigil Kentaurus looks yellow to the eye. Its spectral type is G2V: yellow main-sequence star (similar in temperature to the Sun).

Eyes

A bright, slightly golden star, very close to Hadar.

Binoculars

Still a single bright point. Hadar and the Southern Cross make a beautiful binocular area.

Telescope

Even a small telescope at moderate magnification splits it into two yellow-white stars, a beautiful close pair.

What you’re likely to see, not what a space telescope photographs.

About Rigil Kentaurus

Rigil Kentaurus, better known as Alpha Centauri, is the nearest star system to the Sun and the third-brightest point in the night sky. To the eye it looks like one star, but it is a pair of Sun-like stars orbiting each other every 80 years.

The two bright stars, Alpha Centauri A and B, are about 4.4 light-years away. A third member, the faint red dwarf Proxima Centauri, is slightly closer at 4.2 light-years and is the nearest single star to the Sun. Proxima has at least one known planet.

Alpha Centauri sits deep in the southern sky beside Hadar. Together they are known as the Pointers, because they point to the Southern Cross.

Alpha Centauri A is a little larger and brighter than the Sun, and B a little smaller and cooler. Their separation changes over their 80-year orbit, from about 11 to 35 times the distance between Earth and the Sun.

Its light takes about 4.4 years to reach us, so you see it as it was more than four years ago.

Rigil Kentaurus in Centaurus

Questions

Is Alpha Centauri the closest star?

Its faint companion Proxima Centauri is the closest single star to the Sun, at 4.2 light-years. Alpha Centauri A and B are about 4.4 light-years away.

Can I see Alpha Centauri from the Northern Hemisphere?

Only from places south of roughly 29° N latitude, and then low on the southern horizon.

Can I see Proxima Centauri?

Not with the naked eye. It is about magnitude 11 and needs a telescope and a detailed chart.

Its constellationCentaurus Another starSirius Another starCanopus 4° awayHadar 13° awayAlpha Lupi GuideStargazing for beginners

Sources: SkyMate; Wikidata (CC0). Positions computed for your place and time with astronomy-engine. Data & Licences