Find it in the sky
Alpheratz, the upper left corner of the Great Square of Pegasus, is Andromeda’s head; from it Mirach and Almach run east like a chain. November evenings.
Northern sky
Andromeda
Andromeda: its galaxy’s light set off 2.5 million years ago.
Best in November, around 9 p.m.No. 19 of the 88 constellations by areaBrightest star Alpheratz (magnitude 2.06)8 stars in this guide
The drawings on these maps are the game’s, and don’t show exact positions in the sky.
Legend
In Greek myth Andromeda is the daughter of Queen Cassiopeia. After her mother’s boast angered Poseidon, she was chained to a rock for his sea monster; the hero Perseus saved her and married her.
Its stars
Magnitude says how bright a star looks from here: the smaller the number, the brighter the star.
Almach
Gamma¹ Andromedae
- Type
- Orange bright giant
- Distance
- about 390 light years
- Brightness
- magnitude 2.27
- Name
- “The caracal”, the desert lynx (Arabic)
Through a telescope a golden star shows an indigo-blue companion; the single point the eye sees is four stars.
Nembus
51 Andromedae
- Type
- Orange giant
- Distance
- about 169 light years
- Brightness
- magnitude 3.57
- Name
- An old name of unknown origin and meaning
In 1603 Bayer put it in Perseus as Upsilon Persei; today it is Andromeda’s fifth brightest star.
Titawin
Upsilon Andromedae
- Type
- Yellow-white star
- Distance
- about 44 light years
- Brightness
- magnitude 4.10
- Name
- The Amazigh name of Tétouan, a city in Morocco
The first Sun-like star found with more than one planet (1999).
Mirach
Beta Andromedae
- Type
- Red giant
- Distance
- about 197 light years
- Brightness
- magnitude 2.07
- Name
- “The loins”, or “the girdle” (Arabic)
Right beside it lies a faint galaxy nicknamed “Mirach’s Ghost”: NGC 404.
Kuda
Delta Andromedae
- Type
- Orange giant
- Distance
- about 106 light years
- Brightness
- magnitude 3.28
- Name
- “Horse” (Malay), a constellation of Bali and Java
A triple star: an orange giant and two companions.
Kaffalmusalsala
Kappa Andromedae
- Type
- White star
- Distance
- about 168 light years
- Brightness
- magnitude 4.14
- Name
- “The hand of the chained woman” (Arabic)
A giant companion beside it was photographed directly in 2012: a planet far heavier than Jupiter, or a dwarf star.
Udkadua
Lambda Andromedae
- Type
- Yellow giant
- Distance
- about 85 light years
- Brightness
- magnitude 3.81
- Name
- “The storm demon with the gaping mouth” (a Sumerian constellation)
Its light changes gently every 54 days; the spots on its surface have been mapped.
Alpheratz
Alpha Andromedae
- Type
- Blue-white star
- Distance
- about 97 light years
- Brightness
- magnitude 2.06
- Name
- “The horse’s navel” (Arabic)
A corner of the Great Square of Pegasus, and the brightest mercury-manganese star known.
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Sources: constellation areas follow the International Astronomical Union (IAU) boundaries; star values come from Wikipedia’s articles, based on Hipparcos and Gaia; the Sun’s dates come from EarthSky. Distances are rounded.