- Stars with a name
- Kochab
Kochab
β Ursae Minoris
Kochab is an orange giant, in the constellation Ursa Minor. The light you see from it tonight left it around 1895.
Where to find it
From mid-northern latitudes, such as New York, Rome or Tokyo, it never sets: it circles the pole all night, all year.
Bright enough to see even from a city. Apparent magnitude 2.07.
What it’s like
It gives off 209 times as much light as the Sun.
Its surface temperature is about 3,600 degrees Celsius.
It is 130.9 light years away: 1239 trillion kilometres.