| Constellation | |
List of stars in Pictor |
|
| Abbreviation | Pic |
|---|---|
| Genitive | Pictoris |
| Pronunciation | /ˈpɪktər/, genitive /pɪkˈtɔərɨs/ |
| Symbolism | the Easel |
| Right ascension | 4.53 h ~ 6.85 h |
| Declination | −43° ~ −64° |
| Quadrant | SQ1 |
| Area | 247 sq. deg. (59th) |
| Main stars | 3 |
| Bayer/Flamsteed stars |
15 |
| Stars with planets | 3 |
| Stars brighter than 3.00m | none |
| Stars within 10.00 pc (32.62 ly) | none |
| Brightest star | α Pic (3.30m) |
| Nearest star | Kapteyn's Star (12.77 ly, 3.92 pc) |
| Messier objects | none |
| Meteor showers | none |
| Bordering constellations |
Caelum Carina Columba Dorado Puppis Volans |
| Visible at latitudes between +26° and −90°. Best visible at 21:00 (9 p.m.) during the month of January. |
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Pictor is a small and faint constellation in the southern sky (declination −50° to −60°), located between the brilliant star Canopus and the Large Magellanic Cloud. Its name is Latin for painter, but it is in fact an abbreviation of its original name Equuleus Pictoris, the 'painter's easel', and it is normally represented as an easel. It was invented and named by Abbé Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in the 17th century.
Pictor has attracted attention in recent years because of its second-brightest star β Pictoris, 63.4 light-years distant, which is surrounded by an unusual dust disk rich in carbon. Kapteyn's Star, a nearby red dwarf at the distance of 12.78 light years, is the closest halo star known.
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