SkyKeepsake page about the star Citalá

Citalá is a relatively quiet star nestled within the constellation Mon, a minor constellation barely distinguishable from its surrounding stars. Classified as a K1-V2 dwarf elliptical star, its magnitude is easily recognizable as approximately 6.163. Located a distance of 97.58 light years from Earth, Citalá orbits the center of the Milky Way, presenting a visible presence within that vast galaxy.

Its recognizable nature stems primarily from Sirius, which was famously known for its brilliant visibility within the night sky. Citalá and Sirius share the characteristic brightness of a star relatively close to us in the cosmos. The star’s relatively shallow, circular shape and its relatively low luminosity, and the light it emits, are consistent with classifying it as a type of brown dwarf star.

This unassuming star has been identified as a relatively stable object. It has not exhibited substantial spectral changes observed in photometric data, which tends to indicate a lack of activity like pulsing or variability, and its motion within the galactic bulge is relatively stable – it moves with a consistent period of approximately 33.43 mas/yr. Despite its seemingly unremarkable qualities, this star has retained a significant positional characteristic for its age, suggesting an exceptionally slow rotation within the galactic context, and consequently offers a stable point for ongoing study, minimizing random fluctuations in apparent position.

How to see it

Citalá has a visual magnitude of about 6.16: it usually needs binoculars or a small telescope, especially from light-polluted sites.

Sky position

Equatorial coordinates for Citalá: right ascension 7h 0m 18s, declination −5° 22′ 0″ (J2000), on the celestial sphere.

Catalog context

Citalá. It appears in classical and modern catalogs as HIP 33719, HD 52265, Gaia DR3 3101382419728401408.

Catalog identifiers

Gaia

Gaia DR3 3101382419728401408

HIP

33719

HD

52265

gaia_dr3

3101382419728401408

Also known as

• Gaia DR3 TOP 5M 3101382419728401408
• HD 52265
• HIP 33719

Observed properties

Visual magnitude

6.16