Beta Boötis Beta Boötis Beta Boötis (β Boötis, abbreviated Beta Boo, β Boo), also named Nekkar, is a star in the northern constellation of Boötes. It has an apparent visual magnitude of 3.5, making it one of the brighter members of the constellation. In the modern constellation, it marks the head of Boötis the herdsman. Based upon parallax measurements obtained during the Hipparcos mission, this star is approximately from the Sun. At that distance, the magnitude of the star is reduced by 0.06 from extinction caused by intervening gas and dust. "β Boötis" (Latinised to "Beta Boötis") is the star's Bayer designation.
Constellation used by observers to navigate the night sky. Asterisms often refer to several stars within a constellation or may share stars with several constellations. Examples include the Pleiades and Hyades within the constellation Taurus and the False Cross split between the southern constellations Carina and Vela, or Venus' Mirror in the constellation of Orion. The word "constellation" comes from the Late Latin term , which can be translated as "set of stars"; it came into use in English during the 14th century. The Ancient Greek word for constellation is ἄστρον. A more modern astronomical sense of the term "constellation" is