It is the brightest star in the constellation and the third-brightest in the night sky, outshone only by Sirius and Canopus.Īlpha Centauri A has 1.1 times the mass and 1.5 times the luminosity of the Sun, while Alpha Centauri B is smaller and cooler, at 0.9 times the Sun's mass and less than 0.5 times its luminosity. To the naked eye, the two main components appear to be a single star with an apparent magnitude of −0.27. Proxima Centauri is also the closest star to the Sun at 4.2465 light-years (1.3020 pc).Īlpha Centauri A and B are Sun-like stars ( Class G and K, respectively), and together they form the binary star system Alpha Centauri AB. It consists of 3 stars: Rigil Kentaurus (Alpha Centauri A), Toliman (B) and Proxima Centauri (C). Α Cen B: Toliman, α 2 Centauri, HR 5460, HD 128621, LHS 51, HIP 71681Īlpha Centauri ( α Centauri, Alpha Cen, or α Cen) is a triple star system in the southern constellation of Centaurus. The bright star system to the right is Beta Centauri. ![]() ![]() Alpha Centauri AB (left) forms a triple star system with Proxima Centauri, circled in red.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |