Star Names That Start With N

There are currently 8 stars in the catalog of the International Astronomical Union whose names begin with the letter n.

Some interesting stars in the night sky are named with an N, such as Nahn, Nashira, and Nekkar.

The following table lists them all. Here’s the nomenclature for the columns to the right:

Name: The proper or colloquial name for the star.

Constellation: The group of stars the star belongs to.

Bayern Designation: The ordered name for the star in the Bayern catalog of stars.

Designation: The ‘scientific’ name for the star in the IAU catalog. This is the name astronomers generally use.

Approval Date: The date the proper name was officially approved for the IAU catalog. Most names have been used for a much longer time though.

NameConstellationBayern DesignationDesignationApproval Date
NahnCancerξ Cancri AHR 36272018-06-01
NaosPuppisζ PuppisHR 31652016-08-21
NashiraCapricornusγ Capricorni AHR 82782016-08-21
NekkarBoötesβ BoötisHR 56022016-08-21
NembusAndromeda51 AndromedaeHR 4642017-09-05
NihalLepusβ Leporis AHR 18292016-07-20
NunkiSagittariusσ Sagittarii AaHR 71212016-08-21
NusakanCorona Borealisβ Coronae Borealis AHR 57472016-09-12

This list does not include some of the proposed star names that are proposed every year, but still haven’t been fully approved and made official.

Find more star names that start with the letter:

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