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Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris (Latinized to Alpha Ursae Minoris) and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude that fluctuates around 1.98, it is the brightest star in the constellation and is readily visible to the naked eye at night.
- 0.60
- 5.4M☉
Jul 28, 2021 · Polaris, known as the North Star, sits more or less directly above Earth's north pole along our planet's rotational axis. This is the imaginary line that extends through the planet and out of the north and south poles. Earth rotates around this line, like a spinning top.
Sep 9, 2019 · Polaris, Alpha Ursae Minoris (α UMi), commonly known as the North Star, is the closest relatively bright star to the north celestial pole. It lies at an estimated distance between 323 and 433 light years (99 to 133 parsecs) from Earth and has an apparent magnitude that varies between 1.86 and 2.13.
- 323-433 light years (99-133 parsecs)
- RA: 198.8 ± 0.20 mas/yr
- 7.54 ± 0.11 mas
- 17 km/s
Currently, Earth's pole stars are Polaris (Alpha Ursae Minoris), a bright magnitude 2 star aligned approximately with its northern axis that serves as a pre-eminent star in celestial navigation, and a much dimmer magnitude 5.5 star on its southern axis, Polaris Australis (Sigma Octantis).
Polaris, Earth’s present northern polestar, or North Star, at the end of the ‘handle’ of the so-called Little Dipper in the constellation Ursa Minor. Polaris is actually a triple star. It is located about 447.6 light-years from Earth and is the closest Cepheid variable.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
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Is Polaris a Polar Star?
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When will Polaris be the North Star again?
Aug 29, 2018 · Polaris is one of the most searched-out stars in the northern hemisphere sky. It turns out that there's more than one star at Polaris. It's really a triple star system that lies around 440 light-years away from Earth. The brightest is what we call Polaris.
Pole Star. Polaris lies almost in a direct line with the Earth’s rotation axis, which is to say almost exactly “above” the North Pole. The star is almost motionless, with all the other stars in the northern sky seemingly rotating around it.
