About Rigil Kentaurus
Rigil Kentaurus is an epic star. It lies about 4.3 light-years from Earth, sits in the constellation Cen, shines at apparent magnitude -0.01 and has spectral type G2V.
One of the closest objects of its kind to the Sun.
Epic star 62 EP
Rigil Kentaurus
RA 219.9115° · Dec -60.8340° · star
Score breakdown
· 5 badgesEpic 68 pts → Anomaly
- Stellar next door (<10 ly) +25
- Brilliant (mag < 1) +18
- Naked-eye visible +8
- Has a proper name +8
- Star +3
Total score 62
6 more points to reach Anomaly.
Badges
- Star · +3
- Stellar next door (<10 ly) · +25
- Naked-eye visible · +8
- Brilliant (mag < 1) · +18
- Has a proper name · +8
Trivia
What makes it special
- Next-door neighbour. One of the closest objects of its kind to the Sun.
Could we get there?
- Verdict. A multi-generation starship could one day attempt the crossing.
Getting there
- Aboard Voyager 1. ≈ 75.9 thousand years at Voyager 1's speed (17 km/s).
- Fastest probe ever. ≈ 6747 years even at the Parker Solar Probe's 192 km/s.
- At 10% light speed. ≈ 43.2 years in a starship at a tenth of light speed.
- Distance. 4.3 light-years from Earth.
Look-back time
- Look-back time. The light you'd see left around the year 2022.
Saying hello
- Say hello. A radio message and its reply would take 8.6 years round-trip.
How we found it
- Named. Notable enough to have earned a proper name, not just a catalogue number.
Properties
- absmag
- 4.379
- bv
- 0.71
- constellation
- Cen
- dist ly
- 4.3209
- mag
- -0.01
- name
- Rigil Kentaurus
- named
- yes
- spect
- G2V
How to see it
Look for Rigil Kentaurus in the constellation Cen. At apparent magnitude -0.01, it can be glimpsed with the unaided eye under dark skies.
Like any astronomical target, Rigil Kentaurus is best seen from a dark site away from city lights, and when it is above the horizon depends on your latitude and the time of year. The visibility panel above works out tonight's viewing window for your saved location.
Why Rigil Kentaurus is an epic star
Rigil Kentaurus scores 62 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the epic tier. Another 6 points would lift it into a rarer tier.
That score comes from 5 science badges — Star, Stellar next door (<10 ly), Naked-eye visible, Brilliant (mag < 1) and Has a proper name — each earned for a real, measurable property of the object. Rarity on Spacedle is never random: the more remarkable an object's astrophysics, the more badges it collects, the higher it scores, and the rarer it ranks.