Alpha Ceti, a red giant star in Cetus
Alpha Ceti is a red giant star in the constellation Cetus. At 249 light years away, it is the 94th brightest star in the Earth's sky, where it shines at an apparent visual magnitude of 2.54.
Alpha Ceti (HIP 14135)
Alpha Ceti is a red giant star in the constellation Cetus. At 249 light years away, it is the 94th brightest star in the Earth's sky, where it shines at an apparent visual magnitude of 2.54. The iron abundance of Alpha Ceti is -0.03 (93.3% of the Sun). It is moving through the Galaxy at a speed of 38.6 km/s relative to the Sun. Its projected Galactic orbit carries it between 19,000 and 29,800 light years from the center of the Galaxy. It will come closest to the Sun 1.3 million years from now when it will brighten to magnitude 1.88 from a distance of 183 light years.
Sky position: RA 3h 2.3m, Dec +4° 5.4'
Common designations: Alpha Ceti, Menkar, 92 Ceti, HIP 14135, HD 18884
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Brightest stars in Cetus:
(list all)
| Rank | Mag. | Star |
| 1 | 2.04 | Diphda |
2
| 2.54
) Alpha Ceti
| Rank | Mag. | Star |
| 3 | 3.46 | Dheneb |
| 4 | 3.47 | Kaffaljidhma |
| 5 | 3.49 | Tau Ceti |
| 6 | 3.56 | Deneb Kaitos Shemali |
| 7 | 3.60 | Theta Ceti |
| 8 | 3.74 | Baten Kaitos |
| 9 | 3.99 | Upsilon Ceti |
| 10 | 4.08 | Delta Ceti |
| 11 | 4.24 | Pi Ceti |
| 12 | 4.27 | Mu Ceti |
| 13 | 4.30 | Xi-2 Ceti |
| 14 | 4.36 | Xi-1 Ceti |
| 15 | 4.44 | 7 Ceti |
| 16 | 4.55 | 2 Ceti |
| 17 | 4.66 | Chi Ceti |
Hover over other bright stars to identify or click to jump.
Galactic Orbit of Alpha Ceti
(compared to the Sun)
E
ccentricity: 22.1% vs. 16.0%Angle φ : 101.5°vs. 26.0°
Semi-major axis : 7,491 pc vs. 8,686 pc
Semi-minor axis: 7,306 pc vs. 8,574 pc
Focus-to-center
: 1,656 pcvs. 1,388 pcSemilatus rectum : 7,125 pc vs. 8,464 pc
Perigalacticon: 5,835 pc vs. 7,297 pc
Apogalacticon
: 9,147 pcvs. 10,074 pcSome Tabulated XHIP Data for Alpha Ceti
(see also: SIMBAD)
Astrometry
2007A&A...474..653V
| Position | Proper Motion | |
| Right Ascension: | 45.56991317° ±0.40 mas | -11.70 ±0.30 mas/yr. |
| Declination: | 4.08992556° ±0.33 mas | -77.70 ±0.40 mas/yr. |
| Galactic Longitude: | 173.31582011° | 44.91 mas/yr. |
| Galactic Latitude: | -45.59554251° | -64.48 mas/yr. |
Parallax: 13.09 ± 0.44 mas
Spectrography
Spectral Type: M1.5IIIa 1989ApJS...71..245K.
Radial Velocity: -26.08 ±0.02 km/s [A rating] 2005A&A...430..165F.
Iron Abundance [Fe/H]:
-0.03 dex
2008A&A...484L..21M.
Photometry
| band | magnitude | Abs. Mag. |
| U | ||
| B | 4.17 | -0.24 |
| V | 2.54 | -1.87 |
| R | ||
| I | 0.77 | -3.65 |
| J | -0.72 | -5.13 |
| H | -1.61 | -6.02 |
| K | -1.82 | -6.24 |
B-V: +1.63 V-I: +1.77
Derivations
Heliocentric distance: 76.29 pc (3.4% margin of error)
Galactocentric distance: 7,453 pc
Transverse velocity: 28.4 km/s
3D heliocentric position and motion:
|
toward: |
Galactic center | Galactic rotation | North Galactic Pole |
| Position ( X, Y, Z) | -53.0 pc | 6.2 pc | -54.5 pc |
| Velocity (U, V, W) | 32.8 km/s | -20.2 km/s | 2.3 km/s |