Iota Ceti

Iota Ceti (ι Cet, ι Ceti) is a star in the constellation Cetus. It has the traditional name Deneb Kaitos Shemali. The name was from the Arabic word ذنب الشمالي - ðánab al-shamāliyy, meaning the northern tail of the sea monster.

In Chinese, 天倉 (Tiān Cāng), meaning Square Celestial Granary, refers to an asterism consisting of ι Ceti, η Ceti, θ Ceti, ζ Ceti, τ Ceti and 57 Ceti.^[1] Consequently, ι Ceti itself is known as 天倉一 (Tiān Cāng yī, English: the First Star of Square Celestial Granary.)^[2]

Structure

Iota Ceti belongs to spectral class K1.5III and has apparent magnitude +3.56. It is approximately 290 light years from Earth.

• Coordinates (equinox J2000.0):
  • Right ascension: 00^h 19^m 25.665^s[3]
  • Declination: −08° 49′ 25.98″^[3]
• Designations

HD 1522, HIP 1562, HR 74.

References

1. (Chinese) 中國星座神話, written by 陳久金. Published by 台灣書房出版有限公司, 2005, ISBN 978-986-7332-25-7.
2. (Chinese) 香港太空館 - 研究資源 - 亮星中英對照表, Hong Kong Space Museum. Accessed on line November 23, 2010.
3. Frosty Drew Observatory & Sky Theatre — Iota Ceti