Contents
Procyon Star Facts (Alpha Canis Minoris)
Updated : 04/02/2025
Procyon, also known as Alpha Canis Minoris (Bayer) is a spectroscopic binary star located in the constellation of Canis Minor, The Small Dog. Procyon is a major star and forms part of the constellation.
Based on the spectral type (F5IV-V), Procyon colour is yellow - white.
Procyon temperature is in the range of between 6,000 and 7,500 Kelvin. Based on the spectral type (F5IV-V) as we don't have the exact temperature', we can deduce that the surface temperature of Procyon is in the order of 6,000 and 7,500K based on the notes from Harvard University. To put this in context, the temperature of our Sun is about 5,778 Kelvin as said by Google.
Procyon is the brightest star in Canis Minor and the 8th in the night sky based on the Hipparcos 2007 apparent magnitude. Based on a parallax of 284.56, Procyon distance from Earth can be calculated at being 11.46 light years away or 3.50 parsecs.
Procyon is a naked-eye star, so you don't need a telescope or binoculars when you look up on a clear night. The lower the magnitude, the easier it will be to see it.
Star System
Procyon is a binary or multiple star system. The list below may not include all the stars, only those that are recorded on this site.
- Procyon is the main star in the system and the one that is designated as 'A'. It can also refer to the whole system. Procyon is a blue to white subgiant star whose temperature is between 6,000 and 7,500 Kelvin.
- Procyon B is a dwarf star.
Location
Procyon location in sky is determined by the right ascension (R.A.) and declination (Dec.). These are equivalent to the Longitude and Latitude on Earth. The Right Ascension (Longitude) is expressed in time (hh:mm:ss) and is how far the star is along Earth's celestial equator. If the R.A. is positive, then it's eastwards and vice versa.
The Declination (Latitude) is how far north or south the object is compared to the celestial equator and is expressed in degrees. If the value is positive, it is north of the celestial equator. For Procyon, the location is 07h 39m 18.54 and +05° 13` 39.0 .
Based on the location of Canis Minor, Procyon can be located in the equatorial region of the celestial sky. The celestial hemisphere is equivalent to the hemispheres on Earth. Being in the equatorial region, Procyon can be seen in both terrestrial hemispheres but there is a caveat of depending how far south and north you are. Procyon is south of the Ecliptic. The Ecliptic is the path that the Earth takes as it orbits the Sun. As the Earth is titled, we therefore have Celestial and Ecliptic hemispheres and they can be different for a star.
Physical Properties
Spectral Type
Procyon spectral type of F5IV-V which means its colour and type is yellow to white spectroscopic binary star. There is no relationship between colour and size. For example, a red star can be large or small. Small stars are more energy efficient than larger stars and live longer.
Procyon Luminosity
Luminosity is the amount of energy a star pumps out relative to the amount that our star, the Sun, gives out. Our star, the Sun's value is 1. Procyon luminosity figure of 7.16 is based on the value in the Simbad Hipparcos Extended Catalogue at the University of Strasbourg from 2012. The star generates more energy than our star.
Procyon Size (Radius)
Procyon radius has been calculated as being 2.048 times bigger than the Sun. The Sun's radius is 695,800km, therefore, the Procyon radius is an estimated 1,424,998.4.km. The error range for the radius is between 0.02500 and 0.02500.
Procyon Mass
Procyon mass is 1.499 times that of our star, the Sun. There is an uncertainty of between -0.031 and +0.0310. The Sun's Mass is 1,989,100,000,000,000,000,000 billion kg. which to calculate using this website is too large. To give an idea of size, the Sun is 99.86% of the solar system's mass.
Procyon Lifespan
Using the mass amount above, we can get an idea of the life span of the star using the formula from Georgia State University, we estimate Procyon Lifespan at 3.63 billion years . The more massive a star is, the less efficient it is with its fuel so will live shorter lives than a less massive star.
Procyon Death
We can't be sure when Procyon will die, we can have estimations based on its spectral type and mass. Based on current estimations with Procyon having less than 10 solar masses, Procyon will most likely first start losing its mass in solar winds in a Planetary Nebula phase before the nebula disperses leaving behind a White Dwarf.
Iron Abundance
Procyon Iron Abundance is -0.02 with an error value of 9.99 Fe/H, with the Sun having a value of 1 to put it into context. The value comes from the Hipparcos Extended Catalog.
Procyon Age
Procyon age according to Hipparcos data files put the star at an age of about 1.7 billion years old but could be between 1.6 and 1.8 billion years old. In comparison, the Sun's age is about 4.6 billion years old. The smaller star is, the more efficient it is with its fuel and so will live longer than a star which is very large.
Magnitude (Apparent / Absolute / Visible)
A number represents a star’s magnitude, whether apparent/visual or absolute. The smaller the number, the brighter the star is. The Sun is the brightest star and therefore has the lowest of all magnitudes, -26.74. A faint star will have a high number.
Procyon apparent magnitude is 0.4, which is a measure of the star's brightness as seen from Earth. Apparent Magnitude is also known as Visual Magnitude.
If you use the 1997 parallax value, Procyon' absolute magnitude is 2.68. If you use the 2007 parallax value, Procyon' absolute magnitude is 2.67. Absolute Magnitude is the star's apparent magnitude from 10 parsecs or 32.6 light years. The magnitude assumes nothing is between the object and the viewer, such as dust clouds. To compare different stars' actual brightness, you would best use Absolute rather than Apparent Magnitude.
Procyon is visible from Earth without needing binoculars or a telescope. The lower the Apparent Magnitude of a star or other object is, the easier it is to see in the night sky. An object with a magnitude greater than 6.5 cannot be seen without a telescope or other device.
Procyon Distance from Earth
Procyon distance from Earth is 11.41 light-years away from Earth or 3.50 parsecs. If you want that in miles, it is about 67,075,115,508,024.99, based on 1 Ly = 5,878,625,373,183.61 miles. The distance is calculated using the parallax from the original Hipparcos data released in 1997 which is 285.93000.
In 2007, Hipparcos data was revised with a new parallax of 284.56000, which puts the Procyon distance from Earth as 11.46 light years or 3.51 parsecs. It should not be taken as though the star is moving closer or further away from Earth. It is purely that the distance was recalculated.
An Astronomical Unit is the distance between Earth and the Sun. The number of A.U. is the number of times that the star is from the Earth compared to the Sun. When you use the 2007 distance, Procyon is roughly 723,984.425 Astronomical Units from the Earth/Sun give or take a few.
Procyon Galacto-Centric Distance is 7,403 Parsecs or 24,145.872 Light Years. The Galacto-Centric Distance is the distance from the Procyon to the Centre of the Galaxy which is Sagittarius A*.
How long it will take to get to Procyon
The time it takes to travel to Procyon depends on how fast you are going. U.G. has done some calculations as to how long it will take to go at differing speeds. A note about the calculations, when I'm talking about years, I'm talking about non-leap years only (365 days).
The New Horizons space probe is the fastest one that we've sent into space at the time of writing. Its primary mission was to visit Pluto, which at the time of launch (2006), Pluto was still a planet.
Mach 1 is the speed of sound; Mach 2 is twice the speed. |Before retiring, Concorde was the fastest commercial aeroplane and the only passenger jet that could do Mach 2.
For some small screens, you may need to swipe the table to see the information. If you need an explanation, hover over the bold text. At methods are assuming you have unlimited fuel and travel at a constant speed.
- Walking - 1,921,316,642.085
- Car - 109,789,522.405
- Airbus A380 - 10,441,938.272
- Mach 1 - 10,016,391.342
- Mach 2 - 5,675,972.355
- New Horizons - 211,133.697
- Speed of Light - 11.46
Radial Velocity and Proper Motion
In simplistic terms, all non-rogue stars, like planets, orbit around a central object, although that is actually not true. Where is the centre of the Solar System. For simplicity it's the central star, such as the Sun. In the case of a star, it's the galactic centre. The constellations we see today will be different than they were 50,000 years ago or 50,000 years from now.
Proper motion details the movements of these stars and is measured in milliarcseconds. Procyon is moving -1,036.8 ± 0.55 milliarcseconds/year towards the north and -714.59 ± 1.26 milliarcseconds/year east if we saw them in the horizon.
The radial velocity, the speed at which the Procyon is towards the Sun, is -2.70000 km/s with an error of about 1.01 km/s . When the value is negative, the star and the Sun are getting closer to one another; likewise, a positive number means that two stars are moving away. It's nothing to fear as the stars are so far apart they won't collide in our lifetime, if ever.
Procyon Fact List
The table is scrollable if you can't see everything, just swipe the table to see the hidden information.
Summary Facts
Primary Name:
ProcyonSpectral Type:
F5IV-VBinary or Multiple Star:
YesStar Type:
Spectroscopic Binary starColour:
yellow to whiteGalaxy:
Milky WayConstellation:
Canis MinorCelestial Hemisphere:
Equatorial RegionMain Star :
YesAge :
1.7 billion yearsAge Range :
1.6 - 1.8 billion yearsVisual / Apparent Magnitude :
0.4Visible From Earth :
YesAbsolute Magnitude :
2.67Radial Velocity :
-2.70000 ± 1.01 km/sIron Abundance (Fe/H) :
-0.0200 ± 9.99Eccentricity:
0.1053Inclination :
31.91Semi-Major Axis :
7862Luminosity (Lsun) :
7.16Mass (Solars) :
1.4990 (-0.031 / +0.0310)Radius :
2.048 (-0.025 / +0.025)Location/Coordinates
Right Ascension :
07h 39m 18.54Declination :
+05° 13` 39.0Galactic Latitude :
13.02207808 °Galactic Longitude :
213.70072321 °Galacto-Centric Distance:
24,145.872 Light Years / 7,403 Parsecs
Distance from Earth
Parallax :
284.56000Light Years :
11.46Parsecs :
3.51Astronomical Units (A.U.) :
723,984.425Proper Motion :
(milliarcseconds/year)Declination :
-1036.8 ± 0.55Right Ascension :
-714.59 ± 1.26Miscellaneous Facts
B-V Index :
0.43Orbital Period (Days) :
14748.00000Argument Of Periastron
88.80000Brightest in Night Sky
8thAlternate Names :
Alpha Canis Minoris, Alf Cmi, HD 61421, TYC 187-2184-1, LHS 233, HIP 37279, HR 2943, 10 Canis Minoris, 10 Cmi, BD +05 1739, Gliese 280.0, 2MASS J7391805-513298, IRAS 7366+520
Sources and Links
- Modified Date: 4th February 2025
- Published Date: Jan 2015
- SIMBAD Source: Hipparcos Catalogue & Simbad
- Source: Simbad
Canis Minor's Main Stars in Brightness Order
- Procyon (Alpha Canis Minoris)
- Gomeisa (Beta Canis Minoris)
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