The AsterNym star registry
Polaris
Polaris: the North Star that never moves
yellow-white · Ursa Minor · α UMi
Every other star wheels across the night. Polaris stays. Sitting almost exactly above Earth's northern axis, it has told travellers which way is north for centuries — the fixed point everything else turns around.
That makes Polaris the dedication for the steadiest person you know: the one who does not move when everything else does.
Real star · Personal dedication · Recorded in the AsterNym registry
See what a dedicated page looks like — preview
Polaris at a glance
- Constellation
- Ursa Minor
- Other name
- α UMi
- Catalogue number
- HIP 11767
- Distance
- ≈ 433 light-years
- Brightness
- Magnitude 1.98 naked-eye
- Star type
- F7 Ib
- Colour
- yellow-white
- Best seen from
- The far northern sky
- Right ascension
- 02h 31m 49s
- Declination
- +89° 15′ 51″
Coordinates are J2000 epoch, checkable against any astronomical source or planetarium app.
Why is Polaris special?
Find the North Star and you have found north — no compass, no map, no signal required. Runaways, sailors and desert travellers have trusted it with their lives.
Polaris is actually a triple star system, and its leading star is a Cepheid variable — a class of pulsing star astronomers use to measure the scale of the universe.
What does the name Polaris mean?
Polaris is simply Latin — stella polaris, “the pole star.” Its older names say more: Stella Maris, “star of the sea,” and Lodestar, the star that leads.
What could a Polaris dedication represent?
Polaris is especially meaningful for someone who:
- · Is your fixed point when everything spins
- · Has never once let you down
- · Guides without needing to be asked
- · Is the direction you check yourself against
Dedication idea
“For the one who stays — my true north.”
Where can you see Polaris?
It is a deep-northern star: easy from Europe, North America and northern Asia, but it never rises for observers south of about latitude 1°S.
Polaris belongs to Ursa Minor, where it is the brightest star.
Dedicate Polaris to someone who matters
A flower fades. A card is eventually put away. A star gives your message a place in the sky.
Your Polaris dedication includes:
- · Your chosen dedication name
- · Your personal message
- · Polaris's real astronomical coordinates
- · A shareable dedication page
- · Its location on the AsterNym Galaxy Map
- · An optional printable certificate and gift presentation
Polaris keeps its established astronomical name. Your dedication is a personal commemorative record within the AsterNym registry.
Frequently asked questions about Polaris
- Is Polaris the brightest star?
- Polaris shines at magnitude 1.98 — visible to the naked eye on a clear night, one of the few thousand stars with an officially recognised name.
- How far away is Polaris?
- Polaris is approximately 433 light-years from Earth. The light reaching us tonight began its journey around 433 years ago.
- Which constellation contains Polaris?
- Polaris is the brightest star in Ursa Minor.
- Can everyone see Polaris?
- It is a deep-northern star: easy from Europe, North America and northern Asia, but it never rises for observers south of about latitude 1°S.
- Is dedicating Polaris an official astronomical renaming?
- No. Polaris keeps its internationally recognised astronomical name. An AsterNym dedication records your personal name and message in the AsterNym registry without changing the star's scientific identity.