Based upon parallax measurements made by the Hipparcos spacecraft, it is about 151 light-years from the Solar System.

[17] The system bore the traditional name Alrescha (alternatively Al Rescha, Alrischa, Alrisha) derived from the Arabic الرشآء ar-Rishā’ "the cord" and less commonly Kaitain and Okda, the latter from the Arabic عقدة ʽuqdah "knot" (see Ukdah.

Consequently, the Chinese name for Alpha Piscium itself is 外屏七 (Wài Píng qī, English: the Seventh Star of Outer Fence).

[20] Alpha Piscium comprises a close binary with angular separation of presently 1.8" between the components.

[22] Stars that can set (not in a circumpolar constellation for the viewer) culminate at midnight – where viewed away from any polar region experiencing midnight sun – when at opposition, meaning they can be viewed from dusk until dawn.