Mebsuta

Authors: IAU-WGSN Etymology Group, Susanne M Hoffmann, Youla Azkarrula

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Mebsuta is a modern star name adopted by the International Astronomical Union in the IAU-Catalog of Star Names (IAU-CSN). Its origin is Arabic. It is the name of HIP 32246 (ε Gem, HR 2473) in constellation Gem.

Etymology and History

From an abbreviation of the ind-A asterism name dhira' al-asad almabsuta, "the Lion's Outstretched Paw", for one of the two pairs α/β Gem or α/β CMi. These pairs were assigned to the larger ind-A asterism al-asad, but there is no unanimity in the Arabic sources as to which pair was the "outstretched" or "folded" paw. "Mebsuta" was arbitrarily applied as a star name to ε Gem in recent times. In its indigenous location stretching from parts of Gemini all the way into Virgo, the ind-A al-asad, "the Lion", corresponded to what in other cultures was Leo among the zodiacal signs. Subsequently the sci-Arabs used the indigenous name for the smaller Greek Lion (Leo).

IAU Working Group on Star Names

The name was adopted by the IAU WGSN on 2016/07/20.

Weblinks

• Website of the IAU WGSN: https://exopla.net/

Reference

• References (general)
• Kunitzsch, Paul; Smart, Tim (2006). A Dictionary of Modern star Names: A Short Guide to 254 Star Names and Their Derivations (2nd rev. ed.). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Sky Pub.