| MIRUS - One allusion is to the star Omicron Ceti, the first to be established as a variable star. It is a long period variable, ranging in brightness from 9th magnitude or fainter to 3rd or 4th magnitude in a little less than a year. This remarkable behavior led the astronomer Johannes Hevelius (1611-1687) to name the star "Mira", meaning "Wonderful", from the Latin adjective MIRUS - wonderful, marvelous, astonishing. |
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