Constellation, Centaur
Centaurus
The centaur, half man and half horse, usually seen as the wise Chiron. It holds Alpha Centauri, the nearest star system to the Sun.
From New York on October 13, 2026, the centre of Centaurus rises at 11:54 AM, is highest at 12:49 PM (1° above the horizon in the S) and sets at 1:41 PM.
In the 3D sky
The sky over New York turned towards Centaurus. Drag to look around.
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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
Most centaurs of Greek myth were wild and unruly, but this one is usually identified as Chiron, the wise and learned centaur. He taught hunting, medicine and music, and he was foster-father to Jason and Achilles. In one story Heracles fought off a band of centaurs with arrows dipped in the Hydra’s poison, and one arrow struck Chiron by accident. In another version an arrow simply dropped on his foot. Chiron was immortal, so the wound tortured him without end. Zeus let him give up his immortality, and he died and was placed among the stars.
In Ptolemy’s day the stars of the Southern Cross were the centaur’s hind legs. The centaur is usually drawn holding the Wolf, Lupus, as if about to sacrifice it on the altar, Ara. Alpha Centauri is also called Rigil Kentaurus, from Arabic for the centaur’s foot. Its faint companion Proxima is the nearest known star to the Sun. Ptolemy listed Omega Centauri as a single star. In 1678 Edmond Halley first recognised it as something else, and it is now known as a huge globular cluster.
Sources: Ian Ridpath, Star Tales: Centaurus
Brightest stars
| Star | Designation | Magnitude | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rigil Kentaurus | α1 Cen | -0.01 | 4 light-years |
| Hadar | β Cen | 0.61 | 392 light-years |
| Toliman | α2 Cen | 1.35 | 4 light-years |
| Menkent | θ Cen | 2.06 | 59 light-years |
| γ Cen | γ Cen | 2.20 | 130 light-years |
| ε Cen | ε Cen | 2.29 | 428 light-years |
| η Cen | η Cen | 2.33 | 306 light-years |
| Leepwal | ζ Cen | 2.55 | 382 light-years |
| δ Cen | δ Cen | 2.58 | 415 light-years |
| Kulou | ι Cen | 2.75 | 59 light-years |
Facts
| Area | about 1,063 square degrees (9 of 88) |
|---|---|
| IAU abbreviation | Cen |
| Sky | Southern sky |
| Origin | Listed in Ptolemy’s Almagest, about AD 150, and described by Aratus before him |
| Stars brighter than magnitude 5 | 61 |
| Centre (J2000) | 13.3 h, -49° |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| IC2944 · lam Cen Nebula | Cluster with nebula | 4.5 |
| NGC3766 · Pearl Cluster | Open cluster | 5.3 |
| NGC5138 | Open cluster | 5.3 |
| NGC5139 · Omega Centauri | Globular cluster | 5.3 |
| NGC5662 | Open cluster | 5.5 |
| NGC5460 | Open cluster | 5.6 |
| NGC5281 | Open cluster | 5.9 |
| NGC5316 | Open cluster | 6.0 |
| NGC5617 | Open cluster | 6.3 |
| NGC5128 · Centaurus A | Galaxy | 7.2 |
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.