Based upon parallax measurements obtained during the Hipparcos mission, it is approximately 487 light-years (149 parsecs) from the Sun.

[13] Gamma Ursae Minoris bore the traditional name Pherkad, which derived from the Arabic فرقد farqad "calf", short for aḫfa al farkadayn "the dim one of the two calves", that is Pherkad and Kochab (the full name Ahfa al Farkadain is traditionally applied to Zeta Ursae Minoris).

[15] Consequently, the Chinese name for Gamma Ursae Minoris itself is 北極一 (Běi Jí yī, English: the First Star of North Pole), representing 太子 (Tàizǐ), meaning Crown Prince.

[16] Gamma Ursae Minoris has apparent magnitude +3.05[2] and can be readily observed with the naked eye even in a city-lit night sky.

Based on stellar evolutionary theory, Pherkad might become a Cepheid variable before settling as a red giant similar to its neighbor Kochab, before becoming a white dwarf of roughly 0.85 solar masses.