Kaffaljidhma

Its story

Kaffaljidhma lies in Cetus 79.6 light-years away, a white class-A star, discreet at first glance but full of nuance under the telescope. Its name, distorted from the Arabic «kaff al-jidhma», means «the severed palm», and belongs to a medieval asterism that traced an open hand among the stars. Cetus, the sea monster of the Andromeda myth, occupies a long and dim strip of the autumn sky: Kaffaljidhma stands out there as a firm point amid the half-light.