Alpha Cygni vs Vega

Distance alone puts 56 times between Vega and Alpha Cygni, 25.0 and 1,412 light-years. Seen from Earth the ranking is Vega first at +0.03, Alpha Cygni second at +1.25. By spectral type the pair divides into an A-type star in Cygnus for Alpha Cygni and an A-type star in Lyra for Vega.

Property comparison

Property Alpha Cygni Vega
Penunjukan 50Alp Cyg 3Alp Lyr
Rasi Bintang Cygnus Lyra
Kelas Spektral Class A — A-type (White) Class A — A-type (White)
Magnitudo Semu +1.25 +0.03
Magnitudo Mutlak -6.93 0.60
Jarak 1,412 ly 25.0 ly
Massa N/A N/A
Radius N/A N/A
Suhu N/A N/A
Luminositas N/A N/A

Full data for each star: Alpha Cygni · Vega

Key differences

Key Differences

  • ◆ Both are A-type stars in the Summer Triangle, but they differ enormously in distance and luminosity.
  • ◆ Vega is only 25 light-years away; Deneb is the most distant first-magnitude star at ~2,615 light-years.
  • ◆ Deneb is intrinsically about 196,000 times more luminous than the Sun; Vega is 40 times more luminous.
  • ◆ Vega was the original photometric zero-magnitude reference star.
  • ◆ Deneb is a white supergiant with a radius ~203 R☉; Vega is a near-main-sequence star with radius ~2.4 R☉.
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