Sky of Your Day
  1. Stars with a name
  2. Procyon

Procyon

α Canis Minoris

Procyon is a yellow-white star, in the constellation Canis Minor. The light you see from it tonight left it around 2015.

Where to find it

From mid-northern latitudes, such as New York, Rome or Tokyo, it is best seen in the evening sky in January, February, March, April, and December.

Bright enough to see even from a city. Apparent magnitude 0.40.

What it’s like

It gives off 7.4 times as much light as the Sun.

Its surface is at about 6,700 degrees.

It is 11.5 light years away: 108 trillion kilometres.

It is the star of people born around 2015: the light that left it then is reaching Earth now.

Other named stars in Canis Minor