Centaurus constellation
Latin Centaurus, genitive Centauri, abbreviation Cen
North up, east to the left, as you see the sky. The lines are a common figure; the stars are from the catalogue.
The myth
The centaur, half man, half horse, often Chiron, wise teacher of Achilles and Asclepius. At its foot stands Alpha Centauri, the nearest star system, a little over four light years away; its smallest star, Proxima Centauri, is the nearest star of all. In it also lies Omega Centauri, the largest globular cluster of the Milky Way, a faint smudge to the naked eye. From Europe only its northern edge rises low in spring.
When can Centaurus be seen?
It stands highest around 10 pm in May. It can be seen from everywhere south of 30°N, and it never sets south of 54°S.
The brightest stars
| Star | Designation | Magnitude | Colour |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rigil Kentaurus | α1 Cen | −0.01 | yellow |
| Hadar | β Cen | 0.61 | bluish |
| Toliman | α2 Cen | 1.33 | yellow |
| Menkent | θ Cen | 2.06 | orange |
| Muhlifain | γ Cen | 2.17 | bluish |
| – | ε Cen | 2.30 | bluish |
| – | η Cen | 2.31 | bluish |
| Alnair | ζ Cen | 2.55 | bluish |
The smaller the number, the brighter: below 1 are the brightest stars of the sky, 4 is hard to see under a city sky. Greek letters after Johann Bayer (1603).