The name Rigel Kentaurus is derived from the Arabic phrase Al Rijl
al Kentaurus, meaning "foot of the centaur". The star is more
commonly known as Alpha Centauri, however.
Alpha Centauri is the third brightest star in our night sky
(outshone only by Sirius and Canopus), easily visible in the
southern hemisphere. (not at all visible from Maryland). Alpha
Centauri is actually a triple star systme, comprised of Alpha
Centauri A, Alpha Centauri B, and the red dwarf star Proxima
Centauri (the latter is 4.2 light-years away from our Solar
system). Both of the larger components of this star system are very
similar to our Sun. Alpha Cen A is almost identical to our Sun in
brightness and spectral type, whereas Alpha Cen B is a little more
orange and cooler than our Sun. The two stars orbit each other in
80 years, getting as close as 11.2 AU and as far apart as 35.6 AU
(where 1 AU is the average distance between the Earth and the
Sun).
This cache also doubles as a geocoin trading post. Please,
ONLY trade geocoins at this cache! And please, there should be
no less than two geocoins in the cache at minimum! If there are two
(or worse, one), “discover” them but leave them behind until more
are deposited. The cache starts with seven geocoins. for you to
discover or trade. Please feel free to make repeated visits to
discover new geocoins!
This is another in the Interstellar Series of caches. On the
inside lid of the cache is a code word(s) or acronym. Copy it down.
You’ll need to keep this information tucked away somewhere (say, in
a file) in order to solve the puzzle cache in this series.
The cache hide is a typical, classic sort of hide, so you
shouldn’t need any hints. Please do NOT park on the road! There is
ample and spacious parking in the immediate nearby parking lot. And
very little of it is ever used. Take advantage of this!