The 20 Brightest Stars as Seen from Earth

The 20 Brightest Stars as Seen from Earth

A star's brightness is referred to as its magnitude. "Apparent magnitude" is brightness as seen from Earth. The 20 stars with the highest aparent magnitudes are listed here. "Absolute magnitude" is intrinsic brightness as measured at a standard distance of 32.6 light-years or 10 parsecs from the star. The star with the highest absolute magnitude known in the universe, the Pistol Star, does not appear in this list because it is so far from Earth.

Scientific name

Common name

Distance (light-years)

Alpha Canis Majoris	Sirius	9
Alpha Carinae	Canopus	98
Alpha Centauri	Rigil Kent	4
Alpha Boötis	Arcturus	36
Alpha Lyrae	Vega	26
Alpha Aurigae	Capella	42
Beta Orionis	Rigel	910
Alpha Canis Minoris	Procyon	11
Alpha Eridani	Achernar	85
Alpha Orionis	Betelgeuse	510
Beta Centauri	Hadar	460
Alpha Aquilae	Altair	17
Alpha Tauri	Aldebaran	65
Alpha Crucis	Acrux	360
Alpha Scorpii	Antares	330
Alpha Virginis	Spica	260
Beta Geminorum	Pollux	36
Alpha Piscis Austrini	Fomalhaut	22
Alpha Cygni	Deneb	1,830
Beta Crucis	Mimosa	420
Alpha Leonis	Regulus	85