21 First Magnitude Stars

Star Magnitudes (or visibility) lessens as the number increases. For example, a first magnitude star is one hundred times brighter than a sixth magnitude star and a sixth magnitude star is barely visible to the naked eye. Venus can reach as high as -4.6 magnitude the very brightest planet or star in our night sky. The Full Moon is -12 magnitude and the Sun is a -27 magnitude. Sirius is the brightest fixed star in our sky and is visually rated as a -1.42 magnitude. Here are the brightest magnitude stars we can listed in brightness order starting with the brightest.

Star Name Constellation Magnitude
Sirius Canis Major -1.42
Canopus Carina -0.72
Alpha Centauri Centaurus 0.27
Arcturus Boötes -0.06
Vega Lyra 0.04
Capella Auriga 0.06
Rigel Orion 0.14
Procyon Canis Minor 0.35
Achernar Eridanus 0.53
Hadar Centaurus 0.66
Betelgeuse Orion 0.70
Altair Aquila 0.77
Aldebaran The Bull 0.86
Acrux Crux 0.87
Antares The Scorpion 0.92
Spica The Priestess 1.00
Pollux The Twins 1.16
Fomalhaut Piscis Austrinus 1.17
Deneb Cygnus 1.26
Beta Crucis Crux 1.28
Regulus The Lion 1.36

<to top>