AL TARF (Beta Cancri). Surely, if Cancer (the Crab) were anywhere but on the ecliptic, the apparent pathway of the Sun, it never would have been made into a constellation by the ancients.
It has the traditional name Tarf (Altarf), of uncertain derivation but perhaps from Arabic ا"-رف aţ-ţarf "the eye" or -رفة aţ-ţarfah "the glance (of Leo)". It is approximately 290 light years from Earth.
The brightest star in the Cancer constellation is [1209] beta Cancri, also known as Tarf or Al Tarf, with an apparent magnitude of 3.50. The primary component is an orange K-type giant 290 light-years distant from Earth.
Named stars: Alpha Can (Acubens/Sertan), Beta Can (Al Tarf)
Info: Cancer is one of the 13 zodiacal constellations (that is, the Sun passes through it in the course of the year). This constellation contains the star cluster Praesepe (arab: Meleph) ...
At the center of the crab's shell is a huge open cluster, the Beehive cluster, also known as Praesepe (M44). The open cluster M67 is nearby. The brightest star in Cancer is Acubens (meaning claw); the second-brightest is Al Tarf (meaning tip).
 See also: Star, Cancer, Constellation, Magnitude, Earth
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