Betelgeuse: how to find it and when to see it
Betelgeuse ranks 9th of the 74 bright stars on our list, at magnitude 0.45, in the constellation Orion.
You can see it from anywhere north of 83° S, and it's highest in the evening sky in February.
Betelgeuse at a glance
- Constellation
- Orion
- Magnitude
- 0.45
- Rank on our list
- 9 of 74
- Hemisphere
- Northern
- Right ascension
- 5 h 55 min
- Declination
- 7.4° north
- Visible from
- north of 83° S
- Never sets
- north of 83° N
- Best evening
- February 3
- Name from
- Arabic
Where Betelgeuse is in the sky
Betelgeuse sits 7.4° north of the celestial equator, the line in the sky directly above Earth's equator, so it's in the northern half of the sky. Its right ascension is 5 h 55 min.
Right ascension works like longitude on the sky. It's counted in hours, and about one hour of it turns past you each hour of the night.
When and where to see Betelgeuse
From the northern hemisphere
From 40° N, the latitude of New York, Madrid and Beijing, Betelgeuse rises in the east, climbs to 57° above the horizon in the south and sets in the west.
It's in the evening sky from November to April, and it's highest in the evening around February 3, in winter.
From the southern hemisphere
From 34° S, the latitude of Sydney, Cape Town and Buenos Aires, Betelgeuse rises in the east, climbs to 49° above the horizon in the north and sets in the west.
It's in the evening sky from December to April, and it's highest in the evening around February 3, in summer.
How high Betelgeuse climbs from each latitude
The evening is about 9 pm local time, or 10 pm in summer time, and later when the sky is still too bright. A star counts as in the evening sky when it's at least 10° above the horizon.
| Latitude | Visibility | Highest point | Evening sky |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60° N | Rises and sets | 37° in the south | Nov to Apr |
| 50° N | Rises and sets | 47° in the south | Nov to Apr |
| 40° N | Rises and sets | 57° in the south | Nov to Apr |
| 30° N | Rises and sets | 67° in the south | Nov to Apr |
| 20° N | Rises and sets | 77° in the south | Nov to Apr |
| Equator | Rises and sets | 83° in the north | Nov to Apr |
| 20° S | Rises and sets | 63° in the north | Dec to Apr |
| 34° S | Rises and sets | 49° in the north | Dec to Apr |
| 45° S | Rises and sets | 38° in the north | Dec to Mar |
What the name Betelgeuse means
Betelgeuse comes from the Arabic yad al-jawzāʾ, the hand of al-Jawzāʾ, an old Arabic figure in the stars of Orion. A medieval misreading of the Arabic letters turned the first sound into a B.
Keep the sky of a night that matters
Our star maps show the stars above any place, at the minute you choose, with the constellation lines drawn in. If Betelgeuse was above the horizon that night, it's on your map, and we print it on museum-grade paper.
Questions about Betelgeuse
Betelgeuse is in Orion. It sits 7.4° north of the celestial equator, at a right ascension of 5 h 55 min.
Betelgeuse is highest in the evening sky around February 3. That's winter in the northern hemisphere and summer in the southern hemisphere.
Yes, from anywhere north of 83° S. From 34° S, it climbs to 49° above the horizon in the north.
Betelgeuse has a magnitude of 0.45, which ranks it 9th of the 74 bright stars on our list. Sirius looks about 5.7 times brighter.
Betelgeuse comes from the Arabic yad al-jawzāʾ, the hand of al-Jawzāʾ, an old Arabic figure in the stars of Orion. A medieval misreading of the Arabic letters turned the first sound into a B.