Delta Eridani

Delta Eridani (δ Eri, δ Eridani) is a 3.54 magnitude star in the constellation of Eridanus. It is also called Rana. The name Rana means "the frog" in Latin

In Chinese, 天苑 (Tiān Yuàn), meaning Celestial Meadows, refers to an asterism consisting of δ Eridani, γ Eridani, π Eridani, ε Eridani, ζ Eridani, η Eridani, π Ceti, τ¹ Eridani, τ² Eridani, τ³ Eridani, τ⁴ Eridani, τ⁵ Eridani, τ⁶ Eridani, τ⁷ Eridani, τ⁸ Eridani and τ⁹ Eridani. Consequently, δ Eridani itself is known as 天苑三 (Tiān Yuàn sān, English: the Third Star of Celestial Meadows.)

Structure

This star is relatively near to the Sun, at a measured distance of about 29 light years. It is sometime listed as a RS Canum Venaticorum-type variable star, but this is likely to be an error. (It is currently a suspected variable.) Rana is a sub-giant star that is near the end of its hydrogen-burning cycle and is now consuming helium. This has caused the star to expand and become hotter than a comparable main sequence star. As a sub-giant star it is subject to pulsations in its atmosphere.