This is a list of stars which are more luminous than any closer star, that is, stars which emit more radiation than any other star within the same distance of the
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is a nearly perfect ball of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core. The Sun radiates this energy mainly as light, ultraviolet, and infrared radi ...
. The luminosities are measured in
bolometric 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 s ...
and not by visual luminosity. For example,
Alpha Centauri A
Alpha Centauri (Latinisation of names, Latinized from α Centauri and often abbreviated Alpha Cen or α Cen) is a Star System, triple star system in the constellation of Centaurus (constellation), Centaurus. It consists of 3 stars: ...
is the most luminous star within 5
light-years
A light-year, alternatively spelled light year, is a large unit of length used to express astronomical distances and is equivalent to about 9.46 trillion kilometers (), or 5.88 trillion miles ().One trillion here is taken to be 1012 ...
of the Sun. In order to find a star more luminous than α Cen, the radius would have to be extended out to 9 light years, to include
Sirius
Sirius is the list of brightest stars, brightest star in the night sky. Its name is derived from the Ancient Greek language, Greek word , or , meaning 'glowing' or 'scorching'. The star is designated α Canis Majoris, Latinisation ...
. The closest star more luminous than Sirius is
Vega
Vega is the brightest star in the northern constellation of Lyra. It has the Bayer designation α Lyrae, which is Latinised to Alpha Lyrae and abbreviated Alpha Lyr or α Lyr. This star is relatively close at only from the Sun, an ...
, at 25 light years, and so on.
It is important to note that the most luminous star within the same distance of the sun may not be the most luminous in visual range. R Doradus emits much less visible light than Achernar, but its high infrared luminosity makes it brighter.
References
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See also
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List of most luminous stars
This is a list of stars arranged by their absolute magnitude – their intrinsic stellar luminosity. This cannot be observed directly, so instead must be calculated from the apparent magnitude (the brightness as seen from Earth), the distance t ...
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List of nearest stars
This list covers all known stars, brown dwarfs, and sub-brown dwarfs within of the Sun. So far, 131 such objects have been found, of which only 22 are bright enough to be visible without a telescope. The visible light needs to reach or exce ...
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List of nearest bright stars
This list of nearest bright stars is a table of stars found within 15 parsecs (48.9 light-years) of the nearest star, the Sun, that have an absolute magnitude of +8.5 or brighter, which is approximately comparable to a listing of stars more lumi ...
Lists of stars
Stars more luminous than any closer star