HEAVENS REMEMBERbiblical constellation atlas
RUEN
Named star

Merak

HIP
53910
Designation
48 Bet UMa
Bayer designation
β UMa
Visual magnitude
2.34
Constellation
Great Bear
Name approved by the IAU
2016-06-30
Origin of the name

The IAU catalogue's account

Applied in recent times from an abbreviation of its name for the Arabic Almagest period maraqq al-dubb al-akbar, "the Flank (or Groin) of the Greater Bear."

Source language
Arabic
Reference
Kunitzsch, Paul; Smart, Tim (2006). A Dictionary of Modern star Names: A Short Guide to 254 Star Names and Their Derivations (2nd rev. ed.). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Sky Pub.

Source: IAU Catalog of Star Names (IAU-CSN), Working Group on Star Names. The account is the IAU's own text and is quoted in full: it is published under CC BY.

From Kunitzsch & Smart

Layer of tradition
Scientific Arabic
Ancient-layer signal
no simple cue found
Source form
maraqq al-dubb al-akbar
Pronounced
me' rak
Literal meanings
the Flank (or Groin) of the Greater Bear
Periods of use
Recent / modern
Transmission notes
abbreviation

Source: Kunitzsch & Smart, A Dictionary of Modern Star Names, 2nd ed. 2006, p. 56

Layer of tradition and ancient-layer signal are not the dictionary authors' judgement but a keyword reading of the entry's wording. “No simple cue found” means exactly that — the parser found none — not that the name is late.

The fields on this card were read off an OCR layer and are not checked against the printed page. The page number is given so the claim can be verified in your own copy.

Geometric chains

Corpus chains passing through this star. Deviation is the cross-track angular distance of the third star from the great-circle plane.

  • Малый Конь → Малая Медведица → Большая МедведицаНачаток благословения → Малое стадо → Большое стадо - ЦерковьWith: Kitalpha, Kochab · Deviation 0,000723229°
Constellation

Great Bear

H1

Other named stars of this constellation:

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