Star
A red giant and the brightest star in Lynx, a constellation said to need the eyes of a lynx to see.
| Type | Star |
|---|---|
| Distance from Earth | 222 ly |
| Diameter | 75,901,100 km |
| Mass | 3.98 × 10³⁰ kg |
| Temperature | 3,609°C |
| Apparent magnitude | 3.14 |
| Redshift | 0 |
| Hemisphere | Northern |
| Discovered | 1687 |
Stars spend most of their lives fusing hydrogen into helium in their core, and it's the balance between that outward pressure and gravity pulling inward that fixes how big and how bright a star gets.
At 75,901,100 km across, Alpha Lyncis is 54 times the diameter of the Sun.
Its mass is 2.0 times the mass of the Sun.
The light reaching us from Alpha Lyncis tonight left it around 222 years ago.
Its surface sits at 3,882 K, cooler than the Sun at 5,772 K, which is what sets its colour.
It has been on record since 1687.
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