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Stellar Catalog
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Nearby stars catalogue
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Proxima Centauri
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Star Proxima Centauri

Red dwarf Proxima Centauri is located 4 light years away from the Sun. It is a single flare star of spectral class M5.5 Ve, that has 12 % of solar mass. There are multiple known exoplanets in this system.
Sun distance
4 light years

Proxima Centauri

Red dwarf, flare star
Spectral class: M5.5 Ve

Location

Distance iconDistance from the primary: 8700 AU

Basic characteristic

icon weight
Mass: 12.2 % M Sun | 128 M Jupiter
radius icon
Size: 15.4 % R Sun | 1.5 R Jupiter
temperature iconTemperature: 2883 K | 0.5 T Sun
time iconAge: 4.85 billions years | 1.05 Sun
luminosity iconLuminosity: 0.00005 L Sun

Photometry

Magnitude iconApparent magnitude (V): 11.1
Magnitude iconAbsolute magnitude (V): 15.6
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
K
2.1
H
1.6
J
1.2
Grp
0.8
I
0.8
G
0.6
V
0.5
Gbp
0.5
B
0.4
U
0.3
Absolute stellar magnitude in different parts of the electromagnetic spectrum from infrared (K band) to ultraviolet (U band).

Proxima Centauri system structure

Alpha Centauri A
Alpha Centauri B 17.493 AU
Proxima Centauri 8700 AU
Proxima Centauri d
unconfirmed
0.03 AU 0.3 M 5.2 days
Proxima Centauri b 0.05 AU 1.2 M 1.1 R 11.2 days
Proxima Centauri c 1.48 AU 7.8 M 1928 days
More about Proxima Centauri
Proxima Centauri is approximately 20 % of the size of Sun and temperature on its surface is around 2883 K (2610 °C), which is about 50 % of Sun's temperature.
       Proxima Centauri can be found in southern celestial hemisphere, however it is too dim to be seen with the naked eye or even a small telescope. 
Other designations of this star
Alpha Centauri C, CCDM J14396-6050C, GCTP 3278.00, Gliese 551, HIP 70890, LFT 1110, LHS 49, LPM 526, LTT 5721, NLTT 37460, V645 Centauri, Gaia EDR3 5853498713190525696
External sources
simbad icon
Simbad database (NAME Proxima Centauri)
Astronomical database SIMBAD (the Set of Identifications, Measurements and Bibliography for Astronomical Data)
gaia icon
Gaia database (Gaia EDR3 5853498713190525696)
Archive from the Gaia mission
Class of stars Red dwarf
part of star image
part of star image
Red dwarfs are small reddish stars, that are by far the most common type of star in solar neighborhood. Their mass is usually between 10 and 50 % of solar mass.
News from this star system
Article image:

Astronomers have discovered a brown dwarf orbiting the red giant HD 18438

Astronomers led by Byeong-Cheol Lee have made a groundbreaking discovery, detecting a brown dwarf orbiting the red giant HD 18438. With a radius of 89 times that of the Sun, HD 18438 is now the largest known star to be orbited by an exoplanet or brown dwarf.

Article image:

Newly discovered exoplanet HD 207496 b is too close to its star and is loosing atmosphere

Article image:

Two giant exoplanets discovered orbiting nearby Sun-like star HIP 104045

Astronomers discovered two new exoplanets orbiting a star HIP 104045. The star is 175 light years away and its mass and size are similar to the Sun. Both exoplanets are gas giants, smaller than Jupiter.

Article image:

Astronomers used JWST and TESS telescopes to study nearby brown dwarf HD 19467 B

Brown dwarfs are objects between planets and stars. Astronomers divide them into 3 categories according to their temperature - L, T, Y. Their relatively low temperatures and brightness allow them to stay hidden for most part. Only the most powerful infrared telescopes are able to see them and that is where James Webb Space Telescope comes in.

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