Constellation Female Water Snake (Hydra)

Female Water Snake is one of the 88 constellations that carve up the sky. It sits in the southern half of the sky and rides highest overhead around March.

Bright stars in Female Water Snake

NameBayerMagnitudeTypeDistance (ly)
Alphard alpha Hya 1.99 K3III 177.0

About the constellation

The constellation Female Water Snake (Latin Hydra) lies in the southern half of the sky. It passes highest around midnight in March, so the weeks around then are the easiest time to track it down. Its brightest star is Alphard, at magnitude 2.0, easy to pick out even from a lit-up city. From most of the southern hemisphere it climbs into view at some point in the year. Astronomers label its stars with the genitive form Hydrae, as in "Alpha Hydrae".

Other constellations

And Ant Aps Aql Aqr Ara Ari Aur Boo Cae Cam Cnc CVn CMa CMi Cap Car Cas Cen Cep Cet Cha Cir Col Com CrA CrB Crv Crt Cru Cyg Del Dor Dra Equ Eri For Gem Gru Her Hor Hyi Ind Lac Leo LMi Lep Lib Lup Lyn Lyr Men Mic Mon Mus Nor Oct Oph Ori Pav Peg Per Phe Pic Psc PsA Pup Pyx Ret Sge Sgr Sco Scl Sct Ser Sex Tau Tel Tri TrA Tuc UMa UMi Vel Vir Vol Vul