Gacrux (γ Cru / γ Crucis / Gamma Crucis) is the third brightest star in constellation Crux (the Southern Cross) and the one of the brightest stars in the nighttime sky. Gamma (upper case Γ, lower case γ) is the 3rd letter of the Greek alphabet. ... Orion is a remarkable constellation, visible from most places on the globe (but not always the whole year long). ... Crux, being Latin for cross, commonly known as the Southern Cross (in contrast to the Northern Cross), is the smallest of the 88 modern constellations, but also one of the most famous. ... Bright stars can be bright because they produce more light, or because they are closer to us. ...

Since Gamma Crucis is at roughly −60° declination, it is only visible south of the Tropic of Cancer and therefore didn't receive an ancient traditional name; "Gacrux" is simply a combination of the "Ga" in Gamma plus Crux. In astronomy declination (dec) is one of the two coordinates of the equatorial coordinate system, the other being either right ascension or hour angle. ... The Tropic of Cancer (cancer (♋) is Latin for crab) is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. ...

Gamma Crucis is a binary star, 120 light years distant from Earth. The main star possesses an apparent magnitude of +1.6 and belongs to the spectral classification M3 III. The +6.4 magnitude companion star (spectral classification A3) is in an angle of 25" with a position angle of 128 degrees of the main star, and can be observed with binoculars. A binary star system consists of two stars both orbiting around their barycenter. ... A light year, abbreviated ly, is the distance light travels in one year: roughly 9. ... The apparent magnitude (m) of a star, planet or other heavenly body is a measure of its apparent brightness; that is, the amount of light received from the object. ... In astronomy, stellar classification is a classification of stars based initially on photospheric temperature and its associated spectral characteristics, and subsequenly refined in terms of other characteristics. ... Binoculars A set of binoculars (from Latin, bi-, two-, and oculus, eye) is a hand-held tool used to make distant objects appear closer by passing the image through two adjacent series of lenses, and erecting prisms. ...

Coordinates (equinox 2000)

• Right ascension: 12h 31m 09.9s
• Declination: -57° 06' 48.0"