- Stars with a name
- Cursa
Cursa
β Eridani
Cursa is a white giant, in the constellation Eridanus. The light you see from it tonight left it around 1937.
Where to find it
From mid-northern latitudes, such as New York, Rome or Tokyo, it is best seen in the evening sky in January, February, and December.
Visible to the naked eye away from the brightest lights. Apparent magnitude 2.78.
What it’s like
It gives off 51 times as much light as the Sun.
Its surface is at about 8,500 degrees.
It is 89.4 light years away: 845 trillion kilometres.
It is the star of people born around 1937: the light that left it then is reaching Earth now.