Find it in the sky
Between Virgo and Scorpius, four stars drawing a quadrangle: the beam and pans of the scales.
Zodiac
Libra
Libra: its stars were once the Scorpion’s claws.
Best in June, around 9 p.m.No. 29 of the 88 constellations by areaBrightest star Zubeneschamali (magnitude 2.61)5 stars in this guide
The drawings on these maps are the game’s, and don’t show exact positions in the sky.
Legend
In ancient Greece Libra’s stars were the Scorpion’s claws. The Romans saw them as the scales of Astraea, goddess of justice, held by her neighbour Virgo.
Sign
23 September to 22 October. In the real sky the Sun passes in front of Libra from about 31 October to 22 November.
Its stars
Magnitude says how bright a star looks from here: the smaller the number, the brighter the star.
Brachium
Sigma Librae
- Type
- Red giant
- Distance
- about 290 light years
- Brightness
- magnitude 3.25
- Name
- “Arm” (Latin)
It once counted as part of Scorpius, as Gamma Scorpii. A red giant.
Zubenelgenubi
Alpha² Librae
- Type
- White star
- Distance
- about 75 light years
- Brightness
- magnitude 2.75
- Name
- “Southern claw” (Arabic; of the scorpion)
Libra was once the scorpion’s claws. Binoculars split this star in two.
Zuben Elakribi
Delta Librae
- Type
- Blue-white star
- Distance
- about 300 light years
- Brightness
- magnitude 4.91
- Name
- “Claw of the scorpion” (Arabic)
An eclipsing pair: every 2.3 days its partner passes in front and it dims.
Zubeneschamali
Beta Librae
- Type
- Blue-white star
- Distance
- about 185 light years
- Brightness
- magnitude 2.61
- Name
- “Northern claw” (Arabic)
Some observers see it greenish; it is called the only naked-eye star that looks green.
Zubenelhakrabi
Gamma Librae
- Type
- Orange giant
- Distance
- about 150 light years
- Brightness
- magnitude 3.91
- Name
- “Claw of the scorpion” (Arabic; another spelling)
An orange giant; two planets were found around it in 2018.
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Sources: constellation areas follow the International Astronomical Union (IAU) boundaries; star values come from Wikipedia’s articles, based on Hipparcos and Gaia; the Sun’s dates come from EarthSky. Distances are rounded.