Hadar: how to find it and when to see it
Hadar ranks 11th of the 74 bright stars on our list, at magnitude 0.61, in the constellation Centaurus.
You can see it from anywhere south of 29° N, and it's highest in the evening sky in June.
Hadar at a glance
- Constellation
- Centaurus
- Magnitude
- 0.61
- Rank on our list
- 11 of 74
- Hemisphere
- Southern
- Right ascension
- 14 h 4 min
- Declination
- 60.4° south
- Visible from
- south of 29° N
- Never sets
- south of 29° S
- Best evening
- June 7
- Same constellation
- Rigil Kentaurus, Menkent
Where Hadar is in the sky
Hadar sits 60.4° south of the celestial equator, the line in the sky directly above Earth's equator, so it's in the southern half of the sky. Its right ascension is 14 h 4 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 Hadar
From the northern hemisphere
From 40° N, the latitude of New York, Madrid and Beijing, Hadar never rises above the horizon. You need to be south of 29° N to see it.
From the southern hemisphere
From 34° S, the latitude of Sydney, Cape Town and Buenos Aires, Hadar never sets: it circles the pole all night and climbs to 63° above the horizon in the south.
It's in the evening sky from February to October, and it's highest in the evening around June 7, in winter.
How high Hadar 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 | Never rises | Below the horizon | None |
| 50° N | Never rises | Below the horizon | None |
| 40° N | Never rises | Below the horizon | None |
| 30° N | Never rises | Below the horizon | None |
| 20° N | Rises and sets | 9° in the south | None |
| Equator | Rises and sets | 29° in the south | Apr to Aug |
| 20° S | Rises and sets | 49° in the south | Mar to Sep |
| 34° S | Never sets | 63° in the south | Feb to Oct |
| 45° S | Never sets | 74° in the south | All year |
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 Hadar was above the horizon that night, it's on your map, and we print it on museum-grade paper.
Questions about Hadar
Hadar is in Centaurus. It sits 60.4° south of the celestial equator, at a right ascension of 14 h 4 min.
Hadar is highest in the evening sky around June 7. That's summer in the northern hemisphere and winter in the southern hemisphere.
Yes, from anywhere south of 29° N. From 40° N, it never rises, so you need to be further south.
Hadar has a magnitude of 0.61, which ranks it 11th of the 74 bright stars on our list. Sirius looks about 6.6 times brighter.