Hamal: how to find it and when to see it
Hamal ranks 48th of the 74 bright stars on our list, at magnitude 2.01, in the constellation Aries.
You can see it from anywhere north of 66° S, and it's highest in the evening sky in December.
Hamal at a glance
- Constellation
- Aries
- Magnitude
- 2.01
- Rank on our list
- 48 of 74
- Hemisphere
- Northern
- Right ascension
- 2 h 7 min
- Declination
- 23.5° north
- Visible from
- north of 66° S
- Never sets
- north of 66° N
- Best evening
- 8 December
- Name from
- Arabic
Where Hamal is in the sky
Hamal sits 23.5° 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 2 h 7 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 Hamal
From the northern hemisphere
From 40° N, the latitude of New York, Madrid and Beijing, Hamal rises in the north-east, climbs to 74° above the horizon in the south and sets in the north-west.
It's in the evening sky from September to March, and it's highest in the evening around 8 December, in winter.
From the southern hemisphere
From 34° S, the latitude of Sydney, Cape Town and Buenos Aires, Hamal rises in the north-east, climbs to 32° above the horizon in the north and sets in the north-west.
It's in the evening sky from October to January, and it's highest in the evening around 8 December, in summer.
How high Hamal 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 | 54° in the south | Sept to Mar |
| 50° N | Rises and sets | 64° in the south | Sept to Mar |
| 40° N | Rises and sets | 74° in the south | Sept to Mar |
| 30° N | Rises and sets | 84° in the south | Sept to Feb |
| 20° N | Rises and sets | 86° in the north | Sept to Feb |
| Equator | Rises and sets | 66° in the north | Oct to Feb |
| 20° S | Rises and sets | 46° in the north | Oct to Feb |
| 34° S | Rises and sets | 32° in the north | Oct to Jan |
| 45° S | Rises and sets | 21° in the north | Nov to Jan |
What the name Hamal means
Hamal comes from the Arabic al-ḥamal, the ram. It's the brightest star of Aries, the Ram.
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 Hamal was above the horizon that night, it's on your map, and we print it on museum-grade paper.
Questions about Hamal
Hamal is in Aries. It sits 23.5° north of the celestial equator, at a right ascension of 2 h 7 min.
Hamal is highest in the evening sky around 8 December. That's winter in the northern hemisphere and summer in the southern hemisphere.
Yes, from anywhere north of 66° S. From 34° S, it climbs to 32° above the horizon in the north.
Hamal has a magnitude of 2.01, which ranks it 48th of the 74 bright stars on our list. Sirius looks about 24 times brighter.
Hamal comes from the Arabic al-ḥamal, the ram. It's the brightest star of Aries, the Ram.