Zhang is a yellow giant in the coils of Hydra, named after one of the lunar mansions of Chinese astronomy, the mansion called the Extended Net.
At a glance
| type | yellow giant (class G) |
|---|---|
| distance from the Sun | 264 light-years (80.9 pc) |
| its light left it | 264 years ago |
| luminosity | 150 × the Sun |
| radius | 13.6 × the Sun |
| surface temperature | 5,480 K |
| constellation | Hydra (Female Water Snake) |
Read off the piece’s own catalogue, the same values it draws with.
About Zhang
The card describes a giant star larger and more luminous than the Sun, with a similar surface temperature, so it looks yellow. It has finished burning hydrogen in its core.
Chinese astronomy divided the Moon’s path into lunar mansions, and Zhang, the Extended Net, is one of them. The name was adopted by the IAU for this star, which marks the mansion in the body of the Water Snake, east of Alphard.
What you see in the piece
From the Earth it is a faint yellowish point in the snake; flown to in the piece, it sits on its own, unconnected to the stars around it on the sky.
Questions
What does the name Zhang mean?
Zhang is a lunar mansion of Chinese astronomy, the Extended Net, which this star marks in Hydra.