11 Ursae Minoris or 11 UMi is a 5th magnitude

Apparent magnitude

The apparent magnitude of a celestial body is a measure of its brightness as seen by an observer on Earth, adjusted to the value it would have in the absence of the atmosphere...

 K-type giant

Giant star

A giant star is a star with substantially larger radius and luminosity than a main sequence star of the same surface temperature. Typically, giant stars have radii between 10 and 100 solar radii and luminosities between 10 and 1,000 times that of the Sun. Stars still more luminous than giants are...

 star

Star

A star is a massive, luminous sphere of plasma held together by gravity. At the end of its lifetime, a star can also contain a proportion of degenerate matter. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth...

 located approximately 398 light years away in the constellation

Constellation

In modern astronomy, a constellation is an internationally defined area of the celestial sphere. These areas are grouped around asterisms, patterns formed by prominent stars within apparent proximity to one another on Earth's night sky....

 Ursa Minor

Ursa Minor

Ursa Minor , also known as the Little Bear, is a constellation in the northern sky. Like the Great Bear, the tail of the Little Bear may also be seen as the handle of a ladle, whence the name Little Dipper...

. It is sometimes named Pherkard or Pherkad Minor, the later name to distinguish it from Pherkad (Major) which is Gamma Ursae Minoris

Gamma Ursae Minoris

Gamma Ursae Minoris is a slightly variable star in the constellation Ursa Minor. It also has the common name Pherkad. Together with Beta Ursae Minoris, Gamma forms the end of the dipper pan of the "Little Dipper"...

. This star is 1.8 times more massive, 24 times bigger, and 185 times more luminous than our Sun. This star has a detected planet discovered in August 2009.