MIRA THE WONDERFUL STAR [ THE SHOOTING STAR ]

Mira, Omicron Ceti (ο Cet), is an evolved red giant star located in the constellation Cetus. It is a pulsating variable that serves as a prototype for its own class of stars, known as the Mira variables. Mira has an apparent magnitude that varies from 2.0 to 10.1. It is part of a binary system that also contains a faint white dwarf (Mira B). The system lies at an approximate distance of 300 light-years from Earth.

The Omicron Ceti system consists of the red giant Mira and a hot white dwarf, Omicron Ceti B (Mira B). The two stars form a symbiotic pair, the nearest one to the Sun. In 1995, the white dwarf was separated by 70 astronomical units from the primary. It orbits Mira with a period of 497.88 years. The system has an eccentricity of 0.16. The inclination is 112°, which means that we see the system almost edge-on.