Aldebaran: how to find it and when to see it
Aldebaran ranks 14th of the 74 bright stars on our list, at magnitude 0.87, in the constellation Taurus.
You can see it from anywhere north of 73° S, and it's highest in the evening sky in January.
Aldebaran at a glance
Where Aldebaran is in the sky
Aldebaran sits 16.5° 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 4 h 36 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 Aldebaran
From the northern hemisphere
From 40° N, the latitude of New York, Madrid and Beijing, Aldebaran rises in the east, climbs to 67° above the horizon in the south and sets in the west.
It's in the evening sky from October to April, and it's highest in the evening around January 14, in winter.
From the southern hemisphere
From 34° S, the latitude of Sydney, Cape Town and Buenos Aires, Aldebaran rises in the east, climbs to 39° above the horizon in the north and sets in the west.
It's in the evening sky from November to March, and it's highest in the evening around January 14, in summer.
How high Aldebaran 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 | 47° in the south | Oct to Apr |
| 50° N | Rises and sets | 57° in the south | Oct to Apr |
| 40° N | Rises and sets | 67° in the south | Oct to Apr |
| 30° N | Rises and sets | 77° in the south | Nov to Mar |
| 20° N | Rises and sets | 87° in the south | Nov to Mar |
| Equator | Rises and sets | 73° in the north | Nov to Mar |
| 20° S | Rises and sets | 53° in the north | Nov to Mar |
| 34° S | Rises and sets | 39° in the north | Nov to Mar |
| 45° S | Rises and sets | 28° in the north | Dec to Feb |
What the name Aldebaran means
Aldebaran comes from the Arabic al-dabarān, the follower, because it follows the Pleiades star cluster across the sky.
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 Aldebaran was above the horizon that night, it's on your map, and we print it on museum-grade paper.
Questions about Aldebaran
Aldebaran is in Taurus. It sits 16.5° north of the celestial equator, at a right ascension of 4 h 36 min.
Aldebaran is highest in the evening sky around January 14. That's winter in the northern hemisphere and summer in the southern hemisphere.
Yes, from anywhere north of 73° S. From 34° S, it climbs to 39° above the horizon in the north.
Aldebaran has a magnitude of 0.87, which ranks it 14th of the 74 bright stars on our list. Sirius looks about 8.4 times brighter.
Aldebaran comes from the Arabic al-dabarān, the follower, because it follows the Pleiades star cluster across the sky.