Constellation, Sea Goat
Capricornus
The sea goat, half goat and half fish, one of the oldest figures in the sky. It goes back to the Sumerians and Babylonians, who called it the goat-fish.
From New York on October 13, 2026, the centre of Capricornus rises at 3:35 PM, is highest at 8:30 PM (31° above the horizon in the S) and sets at 1:24 AM.
In the 3D sky
The sky over New York turned towards Capricornus. Drag to look around.
Loading 3D view...
Drag to look around, pinch or scroll to zoom.
Evening visibility over the year
Height of the constellation’s centre above the horizon at 10 pm local time on the 15th of each month, from New York. Above about 30° it is well placed.
Name and history
The Sumerians called this figure SUHUR-MASH-HA, the goat-fish, and the Babylonians kept it. The Greeks named it Aigokeros, goat-horned, and linked it with Pan, the goat-legged god of the countryside. In one Greek story Pan leapt into a river to escape the monster Typhon and turned the lower half of his body into a fish. Eratosthenes said instead that the fish’s tail recalls the conch shell Pan blew to rout the Titans. Zeus set his image in the sky in gratitude.
In Greek times the Sun stood in Capricornus at the December solstice, so the southernmost latitude where the Sun can be overhead is still called the Tropic of Capricorn. Precession has since moved the solstice into Sagittarius. Algedi comes from the Arabic for the kid, and Deneb Algedi from the Arabic for the kid’s tail.
Sources: Ian Ridpath, Star Tales: Capricornus
Brightest stars
| Star | Designation | Magnitude | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deneb Algedi | δ Cap | 2.85 | 39 light-years |
| Dabih | β Cap | 3.05 | 327 light-years |
| Algedi | α2 Cap | 3.58 | 106 light-years |
| Nashira | γ Cap | 3.69 | 157 light-years |
| ζ Cap | ζ Cap | 3.77 | 386 light-years |
| Udang | θ Cap | 4.08 | 162 light-years |
| ω Cap | ω Cap | 4.12 | 843 light-years |
| ψ Cap | ψ Cap | 4.13 | 48 light-years |
| ι Cap | ι Cap | 4.28 | 197 light-years |
| α1 Cap | α1 Cap | 4.30 | 569 light-years |
Facts
| Area | about 412 square degrees (40 of 88) |
|---|---|
| IAU abbreviation | Cap |
| Sky | Southern sky |
| Origin | Listed in Ptolemy’s Almagest, about AD 150, from Sumerian and Babylonian roots |
| Stars brighter than magnitude 5 | 17 |
| Centre (J2000) | 21.0 h, -19° |
Deep-sky objects
Galaxies, clusters and nebulae brighter than magnitude 9, from the OpenNGC catalogue. Most need binoculars or a telescope and a dark sky.
| Object | Type | Magnitude |
|---|---|---|
| M30 | Globular cluster | 7.1 |
Boundaries: International Astronomical Union, via Astronomy Engine. Areas are computed from the boundaries by sampling (within about one percent). Names and lines: Stellarium. Stars: HYG Database. Deep-sky objects: OpenNGC. Calculated with Astronomy Engine, an open-source library verified against the US Naval Observatory and NASA JPL. Data sources
How to use this page
Choose your place and a night at the top. The answer and the 3D view show where the constellation is, when it is highest and whether it rises at all from where you are. The chart shows its stars and lines, and the tables list its brightest stars and the deep-sky objects inside it.
Frequently asked questions
When is a constellation best seen?
When it is highest in a dark sky, which the page gives for the night you pick. Each constellation is best placed in a particular season, because the stars rise about four minutes earlier every night.
Why can I not see a constellation from my place?
Constellations far south of the celestial equator never rise from northern places, and those far north never rise from southern ones. The page says when this is the case.
What are the constellation boundaries?
The International Astronomical Union divides the sky into 88 areas with official boundaries. The stick figures are only a drawing aid, the boundaries say which constellation a point in the sky belongs to.
Related guides
- How to learn the constellationsStart with one bright pattern you cannot miss, use it as a signpost to its neighbours, and come back a month later: the sky will have turned, and you will know a little more of it.
- Altitude and azimuth: finding things in the skyTwo angles tell you exactly where to look: which direction, and how high.
- Light pollution and dark skies: the Bortle scaleFrom a city centre you can count a few dozen stars. From a truly dark site you can count a few thousand, with the Milky Way bright enough to cast a shadow. The Bortle scale puts a number on the difference.
- Binoculars for stargazing: what to buy and what to look atA pair of 7x50 or 10x50 binoculars shows the craters of the Moon, the moons of Jupiter, dozens of star clusters and the Andromeda Galaxy, for a fraction of the cost of a telescope.