Mirach

Its story

Mirach is a cool red class-M giant burning 197.5 light-years away in Andromeda. Its reddish tint, visible to the naked eye, betrays an aged star whose outer layers have swelled for billions of years. The name derives from the Arabic «mizar», girdle, marking the side of the chained princess of Greek myth. Sky-watchers often use it as a stepping stone to find the Andromeda Galaxy lying right beside it.