Mirach (Beta Andromedae, 43 Andromedae) Star Facts

Mirach Facts
Mirach's star type is pulsating giant star that can be located in the constellation of Andromeda. The description is based on the spectral class.
Mirach is a main star of the constellation outline.
Based on the spectral type (M0IIIvar) of the star, the star's colour is red .
Beta Andromedae is the Bayer name for the star. It was assigned this name by Johann Bayer in 1603. The closer to the start of the Greek Alphabet the name, the brighter the star is. Alpha stars tend to be the brightest in the constellation. A notable exception is Pollux (Beta Geminorum) which is the brighest star in the Gemini constellation.
Mirach is the 54th brightest star in the night sky and the 2nd brightest star in Andromeda based on the Hipparcos 2007 apparent magnitude. The star can be seen with the naked eye, that is, you don't need a telescope/binoculars to see it.
Using the most recent figures given by the 2007 Hipparcos data, the star is 197.44 light years away from us. Distance
Mirach's Alternative Names
Beta Andromedae (Bet And) is the Bayer Classification for the star. The Bayer Classification was created by Johann Bayer in the early nineteenth century. The brightest star in the constellation is normally given the Alpha designation although there are exceptions such as Pollux which is Beta Geminorum.

The Id of the star in the Yale Bright Star Catalogue is HR337. HIP5447 is the reference name for the star in the Hipparcos Star Catalogue. The Id of the star in the Henry Draper catalogue is HD6860. The Gliese ID of the star is GL 53.3. The star was part of the original catalogue devised by German Astronomer Wilheim Gliese of stars located within 20 parsecs of Earth. Star Names

Mirach has alternative name(s) :- , NSV 00414.

Flamsteed designations are named after the creator, Sir John Flamsteed. Sir John numbered the stars in the constellation with a number and the latin name, this star's Flamsteed designation is 43 Andromedae with it shortened to 43 And.

BD number is the number that the star was filed under in the Durchmusterung or Bonner Durchmusterung, a star catalogue that was put together by the Bonn Observatory between 1859 to 1903. The star's BD Number is BD+34 198.

More details on objects' alternative names can be found at Star Names .

Location of Mirach
The location of the giant star in the night sky is determined by the Right Ascension (R.A.) and Declination (Dec.), these are equivalent to the Longitude and Latitude on the Earth. The Right Ascension is how far expressed in time (hh:mm:ss) the star is along the celestial equator. If the R.A. is positive then its eastwards. The Declination is how far north or south the object is compared to the celestial equator and is expressed in degrees. For Mirach, the location is 01h 09m 43.80 and +35° 37` 15.0 .

Radial Velocity and Proper Motion of Mirach
Proper Motion
All stars like planets orbit round a central spot, in the case of planets, its the central star such as the Sun. In the case of a star, its the galactic centre. The constellations that we see today will be different than they were 50,000 years ago or 50,000 years from now. Proper Motion details the movements of these stars and are measured in milliarcseconds. The star is moving -112.20 ± 0.41 milliarcseconds/year towards the north and 175.90 ± 0.56 milliarcseconds/year east if we saw them in the horizon.

Radial Velocity
The Radial Velocity, that is the speed at which the star is moving away/towards the Sun is 0.06 km/s with an error of about 0.13 km/s . When the value is negative then the star and the Sun are getting closer to one another, likewise, a positive number means that two stars are moving away. Its nothing to fear as the stars are so far apart, they won't collide in our life-time, if ever.

Mirach Luminosity
Luminosity is the amount of energy that a star pumps out and its relative to the amount that our star, the Sun gives out. The figure of 1,674.88 that I have given is based on the value in the Simbad Hipparcos Extended Catalogue at the University of Strasbourg from 2012.

Physical Properties (Colour, Temperature) of Mirach
Mirach Colour and Temperature
Mirach has a spectral type of M0IIIvar. This means the star is a red giant star. The star has a B-V Colour Index of 1.5 which means the star's temperature has been calculated using information from Morgans @ Uni.edu at being 3,989 Kelvin.

Mirach Radius
Radius has been calculated as being 46.05 times bigger than the Sun. The Sun's radius is 695,800km, therefore the star's radius is an estimated 32,038,931.08.km. If you need the diameter of the star, you just need to multiple the radius by 2. However with the 2007 release of updated Hipparcos files, the radius is now calculated at being round 45.62. The figure is derived at by using the formula from SDSS and has been known to produce widely incorrect figures. The star's Iron Abundance is -0.03 with an error value of 9.99 Fe/H with the Sun has a value of 1 to put it into context.

Mirach Apparent and Absolute Magnitudes
Mirach has an apparent magnitude of 2.07 which is how bright we see the star from Earth. Apparent Magnitude is also known as Visual Magnitude. If you used the 1997 Parallax value, you would get an absolute magnitude of -1.86 If you used the 2007 Parallax value, you would get an absolute magnitude of -1.84. Magnitude, whether it be apparent/visual or absolute magnitude is measured by a number, the smaller the number, the brighter the Star is. Our own Sun is the brightest star and therefore has the lowest of all magnitudes, -26.74. A faint star will have a high number.

Distance to Mirach
Using the original Hipparcos data that was released in 1997, the parallax to the star was given as 16.36 which gave the calculated distance to Mirach as 199.37 light years away from Earth or 61.12 parsecs. It would take a spaceship travelling at the speed of light, 199.37 years to get there. We don't have the technology or spaceship that can carry people over that distance yet.

In 2007, Hipparcos data was revised with a new parallax of 16.52 which put Mirach at a distance of 197.44 light years or 60.53 parsecs. It should not be taken as though the star is moving closer or further away from us. It is purely that the distance was recalculated.

Using the 2007 distance, the star is roughly 12,485,121.72 Astronomical Units from the Earth/Sun give or take a few. An Astronomical Unit is the distance between Earth and the Sun. The number of A.U. is the number of times that the star is from the Earth compared to the Sun.

The star's Galacto-Centric Distance is 7,433.00 Parsecs or 24,243.72 Light Years. The Galacto-Centric Distance is the distance from the star to the Centre of the Galaxy which is Sagittarius A*.

Variable Type of Mirach
The star is a pulsating Semi-Regular Star w variable type which means that its size changes over time. The Variable Type is usually named after the first star of that type to be spotted. Mirach brightness ranges from a magnitude of 2.198 to a magnitude of 2.154 over its variable period. The smaller the magnitude, the brighter the star. Its variable/pulsating period lasts for 0.0 days (variability).

Meteor Showers Radiating from near Mirach
The Daytime beta Andromedids Meteor Shower radiants from a point near this star. The meteor shower runs typically between with a peak date of 2nd February. The speed of a meteor in the shower is 26 Km/s.