The closest star system to the Sun is the Alpha Centauri system [ http://homepage.sun…]. Of the three stars in the system, the dimmest -- called Proxima Centauri [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] -- is actually the nearest star [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…]. The bright stars Alpha Centauri [ http://www.astro.ui…] A and B form a close binary [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] as they are separated by only 23 times the Earth- Sun distance [ http://neo.jpl.nasa…] - slightly greater than the distance between Uranus [ http://www.nineplan…] and the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…]. In the above picture [ http://www.eso.org/…], the brightness of the stars overwhelm the photograph causing an illusion of great size, even though the stars are really just small points of light. The Alpha Centauri system [ http://www.eso.org/…] is not visible in much of the northern hemisphere. Alpha Centauri A, also known as Rigil Kentaurus [ http://www.astro.wi…], is the brightest star in the constellation of Centaurus [ http://www.astronom…] and is the fourth brightest star in the night sky. Sirius [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] is the brightest even thought it is more than twice as far away. By an exciting coincidence, Alpha Centauri [ http://www.solstati…] A is the same type of star as our Sun [ http://www.nineplan…], causing many to speculate [ http://homepage.sun…] that it might contain planets that harbor life.
Explanation
The closest star system to the Sun is the Alpha Centauri system [ http://homepage.sun…]. Of the three stars in the system, the dimmest -- called Proxima Centauri [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] -- is actually the nearest star [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…]. The bright stars Alpha Centauri [ http://www.astro.ui…] A and B form a close binary [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] as they are separated by only 23 times the Earth- Sun distance [ http://neo.jpl.nasa…] - slightly greater than the distance between Uranus [ http://www.nineplan…] and the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…]. In the above picture [ http://www.eso.org/…], the brightness of the stars overwhelm the photograph causing an illusion of great size, even though the stars are really just small points of light. The Alpha Centauri system [ http://www.eso.org/…] is not visible in much of the northern hemisphere. Alpha Centauri A, also known as Rigil Kentaurus [ http://www.astro.wi…], is the brightest star in the constellation of Centaurus [ http://www.astronom…] and is the fourth brightest star in the night sky. Sirius [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] is the brightest even thought it is more than twice as far away. By an exciting coincidence, Alpha Centauri [ http://www.solstati…] A is the same type of star as our Sun [ http://www.nineplan…], causing many to speculate [ http://homepage.sun…] that it might contain planets that harbor life.
