A star is a massive luminous spheroid astronomical object made of plasma that is held together by its own gravity. Stars exhibit great diversity in their properties (such as mass, volume, velocity, stage in stellar evolution, and distance from Earth) and some of the outliers are so disproportionate in comparison with the general population that they are considered extreme. This is a list of such stars.
Records that are regarded as authoritative and unlikely to change at any given point are recorded on a white background, while those that could change with new information and/or discoveries are recorded on a grey background.
Title | Object | Date | Data | Comments | Notes | Refs | See more |
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Nearest star | Sun | 3rd century BC | 1 AU | Our local star's distance was first determined in the 3rd century BC by Aristarchus of Samos. | Reported for reference | ||
Second-nearest star | Proxima Centauri | 1915 | 1.30 pc | Also called Alpha Centauri C, it is the outlying star in a trinary star system that includes Alpha Centauri A (Rigil Kentaurus) and Alpha Centauri B (Toliman). This is currently the nearest known neighbouring star to our own Sun. This star was discovered in 1915, and its parallax was determined at the time, when enough observations were established. | [NB 1] | [1][2] | List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs |
Most distant individually seen star | WHL0137-LS | 2022 | z=6.2 ± 0.1
12.9 Gly |
[3][4] | List of the most distant astronomical objects | ||
Most distant star | Stars in HD1 | 2022 | z=13.27
13.5 Gly (light travel distance) |
[5] | List of the most distant astronomical objects | ||
Most distant star gravitationally bound to Milky Way galaxy | ULAS J0015+01 | 2014 | 900,000 light-years | Located in the Milky Way's extreme outer halo, far beyond the galactic disc. | [6] | ||
Oldest star | HD 140283 | before 1912 | 14.5±0.8 billion years | Commonly nicknamed Methuselah as a result of its extreme age, this subgiant star demonstrates a slight blueshift, indicating that it is moving in a direction towards the Earth. | [7] | List of oldest stars | |
Youngest | Stars are being formed constantly in the universe so it is impossible to tell which star is the youngest. For information on the properties of newly formed stars, see Protostar, Young stellar object and Star formation. |
Title | Object | Date | Data | Comments | Notes | Refs | See more |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nearest sun-like star | Alpha Centauri A & B |
1839 | 1.34 parsecs (4.4 ly) | This was the third star whose parallax was determined. Before Alpha Centauri, the record was held by 61 Cygni, the first star whose parallax was determined. | [NB 1][NB 2][NB 3] | ||
Nearest normal star | Alpha Centauri C (Proxima Centauri) |
1915 | 1.30 parsecs (4.2 ly) | Before Proxima, the title had been held by Alpha Centauri A & B. | [NB 1][NB 3] | [8][9] | |
Nearest red dwarf | Before Proxima, the title had been held by Barnard's Star | ||||||
Nearest degenerate star | Sirius B | 1852 | 8.6 light-years (2.6 pc) | This is also the nearest white dwarf. | [NB 4] | ||
Nearest borderline subgiant | Procyon | 11.5 light-years (3.5 pc) | All stars closer to the Sun are either main sequence or dwarf stars. | ||||
Nearest undisputed subgiant | Delta Pavonis | 19.9 light-years (6.1 pc) | A subgiant, but only slightly brighter than the Sun. | ||||
Nearest "true" giant star | Pollux | 33.8 light-years (10.4 pc) | |||||
Nearest red giant | Arcturus | 36.7 light-years (11.3 pc) | |||||
Nearest supergiant | Antares | 550 light-years (170 pc) | |||||
Nearest Wolf-Rayet star | Gamma Velorum | 1,080 light-years (330 pc) | |||||
Nearest spectral type A or hotter | Sirius | 8.6 light-years (2.6 pc) | |||||
Nearest neutron star | RX J1856.35-3754 | 2000 | 400 light-years (120 pc) | [10][11][12] | |||
Nearest white dwarf | Sirius B | 1852 | 8.6 light-years (2.6 pc) | Sirius B is also the second white dwarf discovered, after 40 Eridani B. | [8][13][14] | ||
Nearest flare star | Proxima Centauri (Alpha Centauri C) |
1.30 parsecs (4.2 ly) | α Cen C is also the nearest neighbouring star. | [15] | |||
Nearest brown dwarf | Luhman 16 | 2013 | 6.5 light-years (2.0 pc) | This is a pair of brown dwarfs in a binary system, with no other stars. | [16] |
Title | Object | Date | Data | Comments | Notes | Refs | See more |
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Brightest star from the Earth: Apparent magnitude | Sun | prehistoric | m=−26.74 | Reported for reference [NB 5][NB 6] |
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Brightest star other than the Sun | Sirius (Alpha Canis Majoris) |
prehistoric | m=−1.46 | [NB 5][NB 6][NB 7][NB 1] | List of brightest stars | ||
Brightest star in a transient event | Progenitor of SN 1006 | 1006 | m=−7.5 | This was a supernova, and its remnant (SNR) is catalogued as PKS 1459-41 | [NB 5][NB 6][NB 1] | [17] | |
Dimmest star from the Earth | UDF 2457 | [NB 5][NB 6] | |||||
Most luminous star | R136a1 | 2010 | V=−8.09 | [NB 8] | [18] | List of most luminous stars | |
Most luminous star in a transient event | Progenitor of GRB 080916C | 2008 | V=−40 | The star exploded in a gamma-ray burst with the total energy equal to 9,000 supernovae | [NB 8] | List of gamma-ray bursts | |
Least luminous normal star | 2MASS J0523−1403 | 2013 | V=20.6 | [NB 3][NB 8] | [19] | ||
Most energetic star | R136a1 | 2010 | B=-12.5 | [NB 9] | [18] | List of most luminous stars | |
Most energetic star in a transient event | Progenitor of GRB 080916C | 2008 | [NB 9] | ||||
Least energetic normal star | 2MASS J0523−1403 | 2013 | L=0.000126LSun | [NB 3][NB 9] | [19] | ||
Hottest normal star | WR 102 | T=210000 K | [20] | List of hottest stars | |||
Coolest normal star | S Cassiopeiae | T=1800 K | [21] | List of coolest stars |
Title | Object | Date | Data | Comments | Notes | Refs | See more |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Hottest degenerate star | CSPN of NGC 4361 | 2019 | 270,000 K | [22] | |||
Hottest neutron star | PSR B0943+10 | 3,100,000K | [23] | ||||
Coolest neutron star | PSR B1257+12 | 28,856 K | |||||
Hottest white dwarf | KPD 0005+5106 | 2008 | 200,000 K | [24] | |||
Hottest PG 1159 star/GW Vir star | RX J2117+3412 | 1999 | 170,000 K | [25] | |||
Coolest brown dwarf | WISE 1828+2650 | 250–400 K | WISE 0855-0714 may be cooler at 225–260 K, but its status as a rogue planet or sub-brown dwarf is not well known as its mass is between 3 and 10 MJ. |
Title | Object | Date | Data | Comments | Notes | Refs | See more |
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Largest apparent size star | Sun | prehistoric (3rd century BC) |
31.6′ – 32.7′ | The apparent size of the Sun was first measured by Eratosthenes in the 3rd Century BC,[26] who was the second person to measure the distance to the Sun. However, Thales of Miletus provided a measurement for the real size of the Sun in the 6th century BC, as 1⁄720 the great circle of the Sun (the orbit of the Earth)[27] | Reported for reference [NB 6] |
||
Largest extrasolar apparent size star | R Doradus | 1997 | 0.057" | This replaced Betelgeuse as the largest, Betelgeuse having been the first star other than the Sun to have its apparent size measured. | [NB 6][NB 1] | [28] | |
Smallest apparent size star | Thousands of neutron stars located on the other side of the galaxy, likely impossible to resolve. | [NB 6] | |||||
Largest star (disputed) | Stephenson 2-18 | 2012 | r=2,150 R☉ | Located in close proximity to the extremely massive open cluster Stephenson 2 (RSGC2), where 25 other red supergiants are also located. This star has relative uncertainty of more than 50%. | [29] | List of largest stars | |
Smallest star | EBLM J0555-57Ab | 2017 | 0.084 R☉ | [NB 3] | [30][31][32] | List of smallest stars | |
Most massive star | BAT99-98 | 2014 | 226 M☉ | This exceeds the predicted limit of 150 solar masses, previously believed to be the limit of stellar mass, according to the leading star formation theories. | [NB 10] | [33] | List of most massive stars |
Least massive normal star | SCR 1845–6357 A | 0.07 M☉ | [NB 3] | [34] | List of least massive stars |
Title | Object | Date | Data | Comments | Notes | Refs | See more |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Most massive brown dwarf | SDSS J010448.46+153501.8 | 2017 | 90 MJupiter | This is at the limit between brown dwarfs and red dwarfs.[35][36] | [37] | ||
Most massive degenerate star | The most massive type of degenerate star is the neutron star. See Most massive neutron star for this recordholder. [NB 4] | ||||||
Most massive neutron star | PSR J0740+6620 | 2019 | 2.14 MSun | Several candidates exist which have a higher mass, however their mass has been measured by less precise methods and as such their mass value is regarded as less certain. | [38] | List of most massive neutron stars | |
Most massive neutron star (disputed) | PSR J1748-2021B | 2015 | 2.548 MSun | [39] | |||
Most massive white dwarf | RE J0317-853/ZTF J1901+1458 | 1998/2020 | 1.35 MSun | [40][41] |
Title | Object | Date | Data | Comments | Notes | Refs | See more |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Least massive degenerate star | PSR B0943+10 | 2006 | 0.02 MSun | [23] | |||
Least massive neutron star | |||||||
Least massive white dwarf | SDSS J091709.55+463821.8 (WD J0917+4638) |
2007 | 0.17 MSun | [42][43][44][45] | |||
Least massive brown dwarf | WISE 0855−0714 | 0.007 MSun | Sub-brown dwarf |
Title | Object | Date | Data | Comments | Notes | Refs | See more |
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Highest proper motion | Barnard's Star | 10.3 "/yr | This is also the fourth closest star to the Solar System. | [46][47] | |||
Lowest proper motion | N/A | N/A | ~0 "/yr | Billions of stars on the other end of the galaxy | |||
Highest radial velocity | |||||||
Lowest radial velocity | EY Aquarii | 2013 | -870 km/s | Mira variable | [NB 11] | ||
Highest peculiar motion | |||||||
Lowest peculiar motion | |||||||
Highest rotational speed of a normal star | VFTS 102 | 2013 | 600 km/s | [NB 3] | [48] | ||
Lowest rotational speed | |||||||
Fastest velocity of a star | S5-HVS1 | 2019 | 1,755 km/s | [49][50][51][52] |
Title | Object | Date | Data | Comments | Notes | Refs | See more |
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Least stars in a star system | There are many single star systems. | ||||||
Most stars in a star system | Septuple star system | Both are called 7-star systems in the 1997 MSC,[53] and appear in the 2008 MSC.[54] | [NB 12] | [53][54] | |||
Most stars in a star system (unconfirmed) | Gamma Cassiopeiae | Octuple star system | Unconfirmed | ||||
Stars in the closest orbit around one another | There are many stars that are in contact binary systems (where two or more stars are in physical contact with each other). | ||||||
Stars in the most distant orbit around one another | Fomalhaut A/B/C | ~0.77 parsecs
(2.5 ly) |
|||||
Nearest multiple star system | Alpha Centauri | 1839 | 1.30 parsecs (4.2 ly) | This was one of the first three stars to have its distance measured.[55][56] | [8][57] | ||
Nearest binary star system | Luhman 16 | 2013 | 1.998 parsecs (6.52 ly) | Brown dwarf binary system. The nearest non-brown dwarf binary is Sirius, and the nearest composed entirely of main-sequence stars is Luyten 726-8. | |||
Nearest trinary star system | Alpha Centauri | 1839 | 1.38 parsecs (4.5 ly) | Also nearest multiple star system, and nearest star system of any type | |||
Nearest quaternary star system | Gliese 570 | 5.88 parsecs (19.2 ly) | K4 star orbited by a pair of M stars, all orbited by a T7 brown dwarf. | ||||
Nearest quintenary star system | V1054 Ophiuchi | 6.46 parsecs (21.1 ly) | M3 star orbited by a pair of pair of M4 stars, together orbited by an M3.5 star, all orbited by an M7 star. | ||||
Nearest sextenary star system | Castor | 1718 | 15.6 parsecs (51 ly) | A1 star orbited by a red dwarf, both orbited by another A star orbited by a red dwarf, all orbited by two red dwarfs orbiting each other. | |||
Nearest septenary star system | Nu Scorpii | 150 parsecs (490 ly) | A B3V star orbited by an unknown-type star, both orbited by another unknown star, together orbited by another unknown star, all orbited by a B9III star orbiting a pair of stars which are a B9III and unknown star. |
Title | Object | Date | Data | Comments | Notes | Refs | See more |
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Shortest period black hole binary system | MAXI J1659-152 | 2013 | 2.4 hours | This exceeds the preceding recordholder by about one hour (Swift J1753.5-0127 with a 3.2 hour period) | [58] |