Alpha Centauri is known as the closest star system to the Sun. Of the three stars in this system, Proxima Centauri is the faintest and also the closest to Earth. The other two stars, Alpha Centauri A and Alpha Centauri B, are very close to each other. The distance between these two stars is about 23 times the distance between Earth and the Sun, which is slightly greater than the distance between Uranus and the Sun. Alpha Centauri is barely visible from the northern hemisphere. The brightest star in the Centauri constellation, Alpha Centauri A, also known as Rigil Kentaurus, is also the fourth brightest star in the night sky. Sirius, on the other hand, holds the title of the brightest star in the night sky, despite being twice as far away as Alpha Centauri A. Interestingly, Alpha Centauri A is the same type of star as the Sun, and Proxima Centauri is now known to host a potentially habitable exoplanet.

January 1, 2025 Astronomy Photo of the Day (NASA APOD)

Image Source and Copyright: Telescope Live, Heaven's Mirror Observatory; Processing by Chris Cantrell