Below are lists of the largest stars currently known, ordered by

radius In classical geometry, a radius ( : radii) of a circle or sphere is any of the line segments from its center to its perimeter, and in more modern usage, it is also their length. The name comes from the latin ''radius'', meaning ray but also the ...

and separated into categories by galaxy. The unit of measurement used is the

radius of the Sun Solar radius is a unit of distance used to express the size of stars in astronomy relative to the Sun. The solar radius is usually defined as the radius to the layer in the Sun's photosphere where the optical depth equals 2/3: :1\,R_ = 6.957\t ...

(approximately ). The angular diameters of stars can be measured directly using stellar interferometry. Other methods can use lunar

occultation An occultation is an event that occurs when one object is hidden from the observer by another object that passes between them. The term is often used in astronomy, but can also refer to any situation in which an object in the foreground blocks ...

s or from

eclipsing binaries A binary star is a system of two stars that are gravitationally bound to and in orbit around each other. Binary stars in the night sky that are seen as a single object to the naked eye are often resolved using a telescope as separate stars, in wh ...

, which can be used to test indirect methods of finding stellar radii. Only a few useful

supergiant Supergiants are among the most massive and most luminous stars. Supergiant stars occupy the top region of the Hertzsprung–Russell diagram with absolute visual magnitudes between about −3 and −8. The temperature range of supergiant stars spa ...

stars can be occulted by the Moon, including

Antares Antares is the brightest star in the constellation of Scorpius. It has the Bayer designation α Scorpii, which is Latinised to Alpha Scorpii. Often referred to as "the heart of the scorpion", Antares is flanked by σ Scorpii and τ S ...

A (Alpha Scorpii A). Examples of eclipsing binaries are

Epsilon Aurigae Epsilon Aurigae (ε Aurigae, abbreviated Epsilon Aur, ε Aur) is a multiple star system in the northern constellation of Auriga, the charioteer. It is an unusual eclipsing binary system comprising an F0 supergiant (officially named Alma ...

(Almaaz),

VV Cephei VV Cephei, also known as HD 208816, is an eclipsing binary star system located in the constellation Cepheus, approximately 5,000 light years from Earth. It is both a B star and shell star. VV Cephei is an eclipsing binary with the ...

, and

V766 Centauri V766 Centauri, also known as HR 5171, is a yellow hypergiant in the constellation Centaurus, either 5,000 or 12,000 light years from Earth. It is said to be either an extreme red supergiant (RSG) or recent post-red supergiant (Pos ...

(HR 5171). Angular diameter measurements can be inconsistent because the boundary of the very tenuous atmosphere ( opacity) differs depending on the wavelength of light in which the

star A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...

is observed. Uncertainties remain with the membership and order of the lists, especially when deriving various parameters used in calculations, such as stellar

luminosity Luminosity is an absolute measure of radiated electromagnetic power (light), the radiant power emitted by a light-emitting object over time. In astronomy, luminosity is the total amount of electromagnetic energy emitted per unit of time by a st ...

and

effective temperature The effective temperature of a body such as a star or planet is the temperature of a black body that would emit the same total amount of electromagnetic radiation. Effective temperature is often used as an estimate of a body's surface temperature ...

. Often stellar radii can only be expressed as an average or be within a large range of values. Values for stellar radii vary significantly in different sources and for different observation methods. All the sizes stated in these lists have inaccuracies and may be disputed. The lists are still a work in progress and parameters are prone to change.

Caveats

Various issues exist in determining accurate radii of the largest stars, which in many cases do display significant errors. The following lists are generally based on various considerations or assumptions; these include: * Stellar radii or diameters are usually derived only approximately using

Stefan–Boltzmann law The Stefan–Boltzmann law describes the power radiated from a black body in terms of its temperature. Specifically, the Stefan–Boltzmann law states that the total energy radiated per unit surface area of a black body across all wavelengths ...

for the deduced stellar

and effective surface temperature. *

Stellar distance The cosmic distance ladder (also known as the extragalactic distance scale) is the succession of methods by which astronomers determine the distances to celestial objects. A ''direct'' distance measurement of an astronomical object is possible o ...

s, and their errors, for most stars, remain uncertain or poorly determined. * Many supergiant stars have extended atmospheres, and many are within opaque dust shells, making their true effective temperatures and surfaces highly uncertain. * Many extended supergiant atmospheres also significantly change in size over time, regularly or irregularly pulsating over several months or years as

variable star A variable star is a star whose brightness as seen from Earth (its apparent magnitude) changes with time. This variation may be caused by a change in emitted light or by something partly blocking the light, so variable stars are classified as ...

s. This makes adopted

luminosities Luminosity is an absolute measure of radiated electromagnetic power (light), the radiant power emitted by a light-emitting object over time. In astronomy, luminosity is the total amount of electromagnetic energy emitted per unit of time by a st ...

poorly known and may significantly change the quoted radii. * Other direct methods for determining stellar radii rely on lunar

s or from eclipses in binary systems. This is only possible for a very small number of stars. * Most distance estimates for red supergiants come from stellar cluster or association membership, because it is difficult to calculate accurate distances for red supergiants that are not part of any cluster or association. * In these lists are some examples of extremely distant extragalactic stars, which may have slightly different properties and natures than the currently largest known stars in the

Milky Way The Milky Way is the galaxy that includes our Solar System, with the name describing the galaxy's appearance from Earth: a hazy band of light seen in the night sky formed from stars that cannot be individually distinguished by the naked eye ...

. For example, some red

s in the

Magellanic Clouds The Magellanic Clouds (''Magellanic system'' or ''Nubeculae Magellani'') are two irregular dwarf galaxies in the southern celestial hemisphere. Orbiting the Milky Way galaxy, these satellite galaxies are members of the Local Group. Because both ...

are suspected to have slightly different limiting

temperatures Temperature is a physical quantity that expresses quantitatively the perceptions of hotness and coldness. Temperature is measured with a thermometer. Thermometers are calibrated in various temperature scales that historically have relied o ...

and

. Such stars may exceed accepted limits by undergoing large eruptions or changing their

spectral type In astronomy, stellar classification is the classification of stars based on their stellar spectrum, spectral characteristics. Electromagnetic radiation from the star is analyzed by splitting it with a Prism (optics), prism or diffraction grati ...

s over just a few months (or potentially years).

Lists

The following lists show the largest known stars based on the host galaxy.

Milky Way

Magellanic Clouds

M31 and M33

Other galaxies (within the Local Group)

Outside the Local Group

Notes

References

External links

Giant Stars
An interactive website comparing the Earth and the Sun to some of the largest known stars
Three largest stars identified
BBC News
What is the Biggest Star in the Universe?
Universe Today {{DEFAULTSORT:Largest stars, List of Hypergiants Supergiants

Largest Large means of great size. Large may also refer to: Mathematics * Arbitrarily large, a phrase in mathematics * Large cardinal, a property of certain transfinite numbers * Large category, a category with a proper class of objects and morphisms (or ...

Stars, largest Largest stars