Where is the closest binary star system???

Question

Where in the sky should i look for one if possible...tom science

Answer 1

You may well be LIVING in one !

Answer 2

The closest star system to the Sun is the Alpha Centauri system. Of the three stars in the system, the dimmest -- called Proxima Centauri -- is actually the nearest star. The bright stars Alpha Centauri A and B form a close binary as they are separated by only 23 times the Earth- Sun distance - slightly greater than the distance between Uranus and the Sun. In the above picture, the brightness of the stars overwhelm the photograph causing an illusion of great size, even though the stars are really just small points of light. The Alpha Centauri system is not visible in much of the northern hemisphere. Alpha Centauri A, also known as Rigil Kentaurus, is the brightest star in the constellation of Centaurus and is the fourth brightest star in the night sky. Sirius is the brightest even thought it is more than twice as far away. By an exciting coincidence, Alpha Centauri A is the same type of star as our Sun, causing many to speculate that it might contain planets that harbor life.

Answer 3

Alpha Centauri is usually given as the nearest, but it's not actually a binary: it's a triple-star system. Also, if you live in mid-northern latitudes, you can't see Alpha Centauri.

The closest true binary system is UV Ceti, at 8.4 light years.

The easiest binary system to see with the naked eye is Sirius, the brightest star in the sky. It's companion, Sirius B, is so faint it cannot be seen with our largest telescopes.

While there are no true binaries where both components are visible to the naked eye, there are a lot that can be "split" with binoculars or a small telescope. One of the easiest of these is Castor, in Gemini (which is actually a six-star system!)

Answer 4

Hi. The answer of Alpha and Beta Centauri, althought close, is not quite right. There is a third star, Proxima Centauri, which orbits this binary and it is Proxima that gets closest to Earth. Not to worry, it's still over 4 light years away. Centauri (The Centaur) is below the horizon up here in the US. Hope this helps you.

Answer 5

Come on down to the southern hemisphere. Here we can see all three brightest stars in the sky at once.

Sirius, Canopus and Alpha Centauri - the latter being a triple-star system, and from mid-southern latitudes, never sets.

Also, we have much darker and clearer skies due to much less light pollution and chemical pollution.

If you view the sky from near a USA or European city, you are wasting your time.

Answer 6

Alpha and Beta Centauri, which are coincidentally the closest stars.

Answer 7

some are tens of thousands of miles aside, yet as time is going on they seize up with and closer until eventually they're virtually touching. So the question answer to the question is rather confusing to respond to..

Answer 8

Algol (an eclipsing binary), Sirius, and Cygnus X-1 (of which one member is probably a black hole).

Answer 9

Hit the nail right on the head there, Keith:):):)

I was waiting for someone to pick up on that one:)