Mirzam is a hot blue-white star in Canis Major that rises just before Sirius, its Arabic name meaning the herald of the Dog Star.
At a glance
| type | blue-white star (class B) |
|---|---|
| distance from the Sun | 493 light-years (151 pc) |
| its light left it | 493 years ago |
| luminosity | 30,700 × the Sun |
| radius | 9.05 × the Sun |
| surface temperature | 25,400 K |
| constellation | Canis Major (Great Dog) |
Read off the piece’s own catalogue, the same values it draws with.
About Mirzam
Mirzam is a hot, massive blue-white star, much larger and enormously brighter than the Sun. It pulsates gently, its brightness rising and falling within hours, and it is one of the best-known members of the Beta Cephei class of pulsating stars.
The name is usually read as the herald: Mirzam rises shortly before Sirius and announces it. In the figure of the Great Dog it marks a front paw, just west of Sirius.
What you see in the piece
From Earth Mirzam stands at Sirius’s side; in the piece Sirius is a close neighbour of the Sun and Mirzam lies very far behind it, so the paw comes away from the dog as soon as you fly.
Questions
Why is Mirzam called the herald?
Mirzam rises shortly before Sirius, so it was seen as announcing the Dog Star.
How far away is Mirzam?
Mirzam is 493 light-years (151 pc) from the Sun, far beyond Sirius.