Beta Cassiopeiae (β Cas / β Cassiopeiae) is a star in the constellationCassiopeia. It also has the traditional name Caph, from the Arabic word كفkaf, "palm" (i.e. reaching from the Pleiades)), also known as al-Sanam al-Nakah. The Pleiades star cluster A star is a massive body of plasma in outer space that is currently producing or has produced energy through nuclear fusion. ... Orion is a remarkable constellation, visible from most places on the globe (but not always the whole year long). ... Cassiopeia is a northern constellation which Greek mythology considered to represent a vain queen. ...
Caph has an apparent magnitude of +2.3 and is spectral type F2. Its distance is 54 light years. The apparent magnitude (m) of a star, planet or other heavenly body is a measure of its apparent brightness; that is, the amount of light received from the object. ... In astronomy, stellar classification is a classification of stars based initially on photospheric temperature and its associated spectral characteristics, and subsequently refined in terms of other characteristics. ... A light year, abbreviated ly, is the distance light travels in one year: roughly 9. ...
Cassiopeia is one of the easiest constellations to pick out by looking for a very distinctive "W." The queen lies in the middle of the milky way offering a beautiful backdrop of faint stars for all looks.
Cassiopeia was the legendary queen of Ethiopia, known throughout the land for her elegant beauty.
Enraged by Cassiopeia's false bragging, the Sea Nymph's begged the God of the Sea, Poseidon, to punish the queen for her insults and conceit.