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A pole star is a visible star that is approximately aligned with the axis of rotation of an astronomical body; that is, a star whose apparent position is close to one of the celestial poles. On Earth , a pole star would lie directly overhead when viewed from the North or the South Pole .
The Indestructibles (Ancient Egyptian: j.ḫmw-sk – literally "the ones not knowing destruction" [1] [2]) was the name given by ancient Egyptian astronomers to two bright stars which, at that time, could always be seen circling the North Pole. [3]
Such multiple star systems are indicated by parentheses showing the individual magnitudes of component stars bright enough to make a detectable contribution. For example, the binary star system Alpha Centauri has the total or combined magnitude of −0.27, while its two component stars have magnitudes of +0.01 and +1.33. [3]
The position of the star lies less than 1° away from the north celestial pole, making it the current northern pole star. The stable position of the star in the Northern Sky makes it useful for navigation. [16] As the closest Cepheid variable its distance is used as part of the cosmic distance ladder.
Combined magnitude (3rd brightest star in night sky) −0.04: star Arcturus: seen from Earth 4th brightest star to the naked eye [47] −0.01: star Alpha Centauri A: seen from Earth 4th brightest individual star visible telescopically in the night sky +0.03: star Vega: seen from Earth originally chosen as a definition of the zero point [48] +0. ...
Of particular note among these stars are "the dog star" Sirius, the brightest star in the sky, and four stars of the easily identified constellation Orion. Equatorial stars of the western hemisphere The equatorial region of the celestial sphere's western hemisphere includes 13 navigational stars from Gienah in the constellation Corvus to Markab ...
Polaris (within 1° of the pole) is the nearly stationary bright star just to the right of center in this star trail photo. The north celestial pole currently is within one degree of the bright star Polaris (named from the Latin stella polaris, meaning "pole star").
Vega is the bright star near the bottom. Each night the positions of the stars appear to change as the Earth rotates. However, when a star is located along the Earth's axis of rotation, it will remain in the same position and thus is called a pole star.