The sky around Alpha Centauri and Proxima Centauri

This image of the sky around the bright star Alpha Centauri AB also shows the much fainter red dwarf star, Proxima Centauri, the closest star to the Solar System. The picture was created from pictures forming part of the Digitized Sky Survey 2. The blue halo around Alpha Centauri AB is an artifact of the photographic process, the star is really pale yellow in colour like the Sun.

Proxima Centauri appears as a faint red star towards the lower-right of the picture, a labelled version is available here.

Credit:

Digitized Sky Survey 2
Acknowledgement: Davide De Martin/Mahdi Zamani

About the Image

Id:eso1629i
Type:Observation
Release date:24 August 2016, 19:00
Related releases:eso1629
Size:11086 x 11256 px

About the Object

Name:Proxima b, Proxima Centauri
Type:Milky Way : Star : Circumstellar Material : Planetary System
Constellation:Centaurus
Category:Exoplanets

Image Formats

Large JPEG
54.6 MB
Screensize JPEG
783.0 KB

Zoomable


Wallpapers

1024x768
545.8 KB
1280x1024
964.1 KB
1600x1200
1.5 MB
1920x1200
1.8 MB
2048x1536
2.5 MB

Coordinates

Position (RA):14 34 50.06
Position (Dec):-61° 38' 30.09"
Field of view:186.33 x 189.18 arcminutes
Orientation:North is 0.5° right of vertical

Colours & filters

BandTelescope
Optical
B+R
Digitized Sky Survey 2
Optical
R
Digitized Sky Survey 2
Optical
I
Digitized Sky Survey 2