Gacrux
The top of the Southern Cross, a red giant whose warm colour stands out among the cross’s blue stars.
Tonight from
Rise, highest point and set are worked out on your device for the place above.
What it is
- Brightness
- Magnitude 1.59, the 26th brightest star in the night sky
- Distance
- 89 light years
- Kind of star
- Red giant, spectral type M4 III
- Light it gives out
- About 150 times the Sun’s, in visible light
- Constellation
- Crux, where it is γ Crux
- Catalogue number
- HIP 61084
Figures from HYG database 4.1 (Hipparcos, Yale Bright Star and Gliese catalogues), CC BY-SA 4.0. All sources
Near it in the sky
- MimosaA blue-white giant in Crux, about three fingers away.
- Jewel BoxAn open cluster in Crux, about three fingers away.
- AcruxA blue-white subgiant in Crux, about three fingers away.
- HadarA blue-white giant in Centaurus, about a fist away.
- Omega CentauriA globular cluster in Centaurus, about a fist away.