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Star profile

Merak

Beta Ursae Majoris · Ursa Major

3D likeness based on its real data · class A · ~8,500 K

What is Merak

Merak, together with Dubhe, forms the two 'pointer stars' of the Great Bear: the imaginary line drawn between them, extended five times its length, leads straight to Polaris. For centuries that simple geometry let travellers find north with nothing but their eyes. It is a white A-type star about 80 light-years away — the light arriving now set out around 1946.

Where it is and when to see it

Merak lies in the northern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is February, when it culminates around midnight.

  • From London it never sets and culminates about 85° up.
  • From New York it never sets and culminates about 74° up.
  • From Sydney it never rises above the horizon.

It can be seen from anywhere north of 34° S.

It ranks no. 5 in brightness among the 124 stars of Ursa Major in our catalogue. To find it, start from Alioth, the brightest: it lies about 16° away (a fist at arm's length covers about 10°).

The light you see today left it about 80 years ago.

Find it on the sky map

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Leave your signature on Merak

Your name and a message go up on the map for everyone to read. Signing is free.

Without a lock, someone else can replace your signature. How the lock works

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Write my signature

A public signature from a real person. The chosen name is a symbolic denomination within Stelvia, with no official standing or IAU recognition: the sky is not for sale and belongs to no one.

Astronomical data for Merak

Constellation
Ursa Major
Apparent magnitude
2.34
Distance
79.8 light years
Coordinates (J2000)
RA 165.460° · Dec 56.382°
Catalogue
HIP 53910 · HD 95418

A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.

Other stars in Ursa Major

Ursa Major has 124 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.

See all 124 stars in Ursa Major