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Kochab

Kocab, Beta Ursae Minoris, 7 Ursae Minoris

Orange giant in Ursa Minor

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Proper Names	Kochab, Kocab
Bayer Designation	Beta Ursae Minoris
Flamsteed Number	7 Ursae Minoris
HR (BSC)	5563
HD	131873
Constellation	Ursa Minor
Right Ascension	14h 50m 42s
Declination	+74° 9' 20"
Distance	131 light years 40 parsecs
Magnitude	Apparent: +2.05 Absolute: -0.97
Spectral Class	K4-III orange giant
Planets in this system	Kochab b (Beta Ursae Minoris b), gas giant
Optimum Visibility	May (Usually visible from northern latitudes)
Notes	This orange giant has a diameter more than forty times that of the Sun, but only about twice the mass. It is orbited by at least one planet, Kochab b, which is a vast body far larger than Jupiter.

A view of the giant orange star Kochab, from the point of view of two hypothetical bodies in close orbit. Three thousand years ago, this star marked Earth's Northern Celestial Pole, but shifts in the planet's position have seen the Pole move away from Kochab and towards Polaris.

The second brightest star in Ursa Minor is an orange giant lying just over 130 light years from Earth's Solar System.

Like all the stars of Ursa Minor, orange Kochab lies close to the Northern Celestial Pole.

The Galactic position and direction of Kochab relative to Earth's Sun. Note that, at this extreme scale, the two stars are effectively in the same place.

The giant orange star Kochab is one of the two Guardians of the Pole. The other, far more distant Guardian star Pherkad is just visible in the background of this image.

Imagery provided by Aladin sky atlas

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