With an apparent visual magnitude of +2.7,[2] it is the brightest star in the constellation.

The distance to this star has been determined using parallax measurements, giving an estimate of about 315 light-years (97 parsecs) from Earth.

[10] Alpha Muscae appears to be a Beta Cephei variable star.

Telting and colleagues report it as a Beta Cephei with a high degree of confidence as they found regular pulsations in its spectrum in a high-resolution spectroscopy study published in 2006,[4] although Stankov and Handler (2005) listed it as a poor or rejected candidate in their Catalog of Galactic β Cephei Stars.

[6] Alpha Muscae has a peculiar velocity of 10 km s−1, which, while high, is not enough for it to be considered a runaway star.