When is the best time to observe Talitha?

Talitha is best observed from December through February, with peak visibility during January when it transits around midnight in the Northern Hemisphere.

Where is Talitha located in the sky?

Talitha lies in the constellation Ursa Major at right ascension 08h 59m and declination +48° 02′.

What telescope do I need to split Talitha?

Splitting Talitha requires an aperture beyond typical amateur scopes — even 500 mm struggles against the primary's glare — the components are separated by about 0.9″ at magnitudes near 3.1. The companion is about 7.0 magnitudes fainter, so glare from the primary — not separation — sets the minimum aperture. Larger apertures and steady seeing help resolve the pair cleanly.

Talitha — Double Star in Ursa Major

HIP 44127; Iota Ursae Majoris; 9 Ursae Majoris

Magnitude 3.1^m DoubleStar Ursa Major (UMa) Visible

Star Map + List + Plan

About Talitha

Description

Talitha, Iota Ursae Majoris, is a quadruple star system lying 47 light-years away in the west of Ursa Major. The primary is an A7V white dwarf of about 1.7 solar masses, orbited distantly by a pair of M-dwarf red-dwarf binaries. Talitha shines at combined magnitude 3.14 and forms one of the three "leaps of the gazelle" asterism with Alkaphrah (Kappa UMa) and Alhaud stars — the marks of the bear's "paws" in classical Arabic astronomy.

Observing Tips

Find Talitha west of the main Big Dipper pattern, forming a prominent pair with nearby Kappa UMa (about 0.7 degrees south). Together they make the First Leap of the Gazelle. The bright primary is an easy naked-eye object; the M-dwarf companion binary is around 4 arcseconds out at magnitude 10 — a challenge requiring 10-inch apertures and steady seeing. Circumpolar at mid-northern latitudes.

History

The name Talitha derives from the Arabic "al-qafzah al-thālithah," meaning "the third leap" (of the gazelle, a pre-Islamic asterism). The IAU adopted "Talitha" specifically for Iota UMa A in 2016. The companion pair was resolved by Otto Struve in the 1840s.

Fun Facts

The Three Leaps of the Gazelle asterism is one of the oldest recognized patterns in Ursa Major — older than the Big Dipper itself in some traditions. Talitha is one of the few naked-eye A-type stars close enough to have a directly measured angular diameter by optical interferometry. The full four-star system spans about 200 AU at its present epoch.

Observe

1Physical Properties

Magnitude 3.14

Spectral Type A7V(n)

Star Color Yellow-white (B-V 0.19)

Distance 47 ly

2Position & Identifiers

RA 08h 59m 12.4s

Dec +48° 02' 30.0"

Constellation Ursa Major (UMa)

HR 3569

HIP 44127

HD 76644

SAO 42630

Bayer Iota

Flamsteed 9 UMa

Double Cat 7114

SIMBAD Wikipedia

3How easy to split?

Primary 3.1 mag Companion 10.1 mag Separation 0.9″

Telescope	Bortle 3	Bortle 4	Bortle 5
80 mm refractor 80mm refr.	V. hard	V. hard	V. hard
150 mm Newton 150mm Newt.	V. hard	V. hard	V. hard
Celestron C8 (203 mm SCT) C8 203mm	V. hard	V. hard	V. hard

Easy Medium Hard Very hard Impossible

Bortle 3 = rural · 4 = outer suburbs · 5 = suburbs

Out of reach for typical amateur telescopes, even at Bortle 3.

4Visibility

Set a location in User Settings to see visibility data.

Best season Dec – Feb (peak: Jan)

5Multiple Star System Quadruple

Components 4 (quadruple)

Component IDs AB

Separation 0.9″

Companion Mag 10.1

Position Angle 206°

Star Colors A: Yellow-white

Discoverer HU 628

Notes

BC 10.8, 11.0, 39.69y, a = 0.68". BC is dM1. BCxA: 817.91y, a = 9.092". Separation rapidly decreasing. ADS 7114Aa, | 11.02y, a = 90.354". This is the SB pair.

Separation over time

Measured 1903 → 2017 (114 y)

Separation drift 0.90" → 0.90" (+0.00")

Rate +0.0000" / y

PA drift 203° → 206° (+3°, +0.026°/y)

Essentially fixed on human timescales — the same view your grandchildren will see.

Measured from the WDS observational archive. No orbital solution has been derived — most likely the period is too long to fit an orbit to the available measurement arc.