Best viewed in late autumn, Psi1 Piscium is a binary star in the constellation Pisces. Unlike a number of double stars in Pisces (i.e., 65 Piscium and Alrisha), Psi1’s stars are wide apart. Separated by a generous 29.8″ (arc seconds), backyard astronomers shouldn’t have a problem making out both stars with smaller telescopes. The stars are blue-white in color and lie at a distance of around 275 light-years from us. Also, as one may suspect, Psi1 is an optical binary because the stars don’t orbit each other
My Observations
| Date | January 28, 2022 |
| Time | 8:20 p.m. |
| Location | Seattle, WA |
| Magnification | 169x |
| Scope | Meade 8″ SCT |
| Eyepiece | 12mm |
| Seeing | Good |
| Transparency | Good |
After starting my journey through Pisces with 65 Piscium, I’ve landed upon Psi1. Psi1 is so different as the stars are far apart and shine with a blue-white color.
Key Stats
| Constellation | Pisces |
| Best Viewing | Winter / Early Spring |
| Visual Magnitude | +5.3, +5.4 |
| Absolute Visual Magnitude | +0.69 |
| Distance from Earth | 275 ly |
| Separation | 29.8″ | 2510 AU |
| Milky Way Location | Orion Spur |
| My Viewing Grade | B |
Sources and Notes
Banner adapted from an illustration created by Pablo Budassi. The illustration is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. Full details here.
Sketch by Wayne McGraw
AKA: SAO 74482, Struve 88, HD 6456
The Garden Astronomer 