The brightest star in the sky is Sirius. Its magnitude is -1.46. The
name Sirius is derived from Greek and means 'scorching'. Sirius is
also known as the Dog Star from the constellation in which it lies,
Canis Major (the Great Dog). Only 8.7 light years away, it is one of
the nearest stars to the Sun. The next brightest star after Sirius is
Canopus in the constellation Carina, magnitude -0.72.
Sirius is actually a system of two stars in orbit around each other.
Almost all the light comes from the primary star, Sirius A, which is
a normal star about 2.3 times more massive than the Sun and white
in colour. Its faint companion, Sirius B, was discovered visually in
1862, and is a white dwarf star. It gives out only one ten-
thousandth the light of Sirius A. The pair take 50 years to complete
one orbit.
|
(1998).ISO/media/record_breakers/graphics/sirius.jpg)