List of most luminous stars

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This article is about absolute magnitude. For apparent magnitude, see List of brightest stars.

Below is a list of stars arranged in order of decreasing luminosity (increasing bolometric magnitude). Accurate measurement of stellar luminosities is quite difficult in practice, even when the apparent magnitude is measured accurately, for four reasons:

  1. The distance d to the star must be known, to convert apparent to absolute magnitude. Absolute magnitude is the apparent magnitude a star would have if it were 10 parsecs away from the viewer. Since apparent brightness decreases as the square of the distance (i.e. as 1/d2), a small error (e.g. 10%) in determining d implies an error ~2× as large (thus 20%) in luminosity. Stellar distances are only directly measured accurately out to d ~1000 lt-yrs.
  2. The observed magnitudes must be corrected for the absorption or extinction of intervening interstellar or circumstellar dust and gas. This correction can be enormous and difficult to determine precisely. For example, until accurate infrared observations became possible ~50 years ago, the Galactic Center of the Milky Way was totally obscured to visual observations.
  3. The magnitudes at the wavelengths measured must be corrected for those not observed. "Absolute bolometric magnitude" (which term is redundant, practically speaking, since bolometric magnitudes are nearly always "absolute", i.e. corrected for distance) is a measure of the star's luminosity, summing over its emission at all wavelengths, and thus the total amount of energy radiated by a star every second. Bolometric magnitudes can only be estimated by correcting for unobserved portions of the spectrum that have to be modeled, which is always an issue, and often a large correction. The list is dominated by hot blue stars which produce the majority of their energy output in the ultraviolet, but these may not necessarily be the brightest stars at visual wavelengths.
  4. A large proportion of stellar systems discovered with very high luminosity have later been found to be binary. Usually this results in the total system luminosity being reduced and then that lower luminosity is spread among several components. These binaries are common both because the conditions that produce high mass high luminosity stars also favour multiple star systems, but also because searches for highly luminous stars are inevitably biased towards detecting systems with multiple more normal stars combining to appear luminous.

Because of all these problems, other references may give very different lists of the most luminous stars (different ordering or different stars altogether). Data on different stars can be of somewhat different reliability, depending on the attention one particular star has received as well as largely differing physical difficulties in analysis (see the Pistol Star for an example). The last stars in the list are familiar nearby stars put there for comparison, and not among the most luminous known. It may also interest the reader to know that the Sun is more luminous than approximately 95% of all known stars in the local neighborhood (out to, say, a few hundred light years), due to enormous numbers of somewhat less massive stars that are cooler and often much less luminous. For perspective, the overall range of stellar luminosities runs from dwarfs less than 1/10,000th as luminous as the Sun, to supergiants over 1,000,000 times more luminous.

Data

This list is currently limited mostly to galactic and Magellanic Cloud objects, but a few stars in other local group galaxies can now be examined in enough detail to determine the luminosities. As of mid-2012 the list is more or less complete for stars down to 1,000,000 times the luminosity of the Sun. Some suspected binaries in this magnitude range are excluded because there is insufficient information about the luminosity of the individual components. Selected fainter stars are also shown for comparison.

Despite their extreme luminosity, many of these stars are nevertheless too distant to be observed with the naked eye. Stars that are at least sometimes visible to the unaided eye have their apparent magnitude (6.5 or brighter) highlighted in blue.

Star name Bolometric
luminosity
(in solar units)		 Absolute
bolometric
magnitude		 Approx. distance
from solar system
(in light years)		 Apparent
visible magnitude
R136a1 (in LMC) 8,710,000 −12.5 163,000 12.23
M33-013406.63 (in Triangulum Galaxy) 6,400,000–10,280,000 −12.2 to −12.7[1] 2,380,000 to 3,070,000 16.1
WR 25 (in Carina Nebula)[lower-alpha 1] 6,300,000 −12.16[2] 7,500 8.80
NGC 2363-V1[lower-alpha 2] 6,300,000 −12.16[3][4] 11,100,000 17.88
R136c (in LMC) 5,623,000 −12.0 160,000 12.86
η Car (in Carina Nebula)[lower-alpha 3] 5,000,000 −12.0[5] 7,500 −0.8 to 7.9[6]
BAT99-98 (AB12 in LMC) 5,000,000 −12.0[7] 165,000 13.70
G0.238-0.071 5,000,000 −12.0[8] 26,000
Melnick 34 (BAT99-116 in LMC)[lower-alpha 4] 4,900,000 −11.9[9] 160,000 13.10
HD 38282 (R144 in LMC)[lower-alpha 5] 4,500,000 −11.9[10] 160,000 11.11
R136a2 (in LMC) 4,266,000 −11.7 160,000 12.34
V4998 Sagittarii (near Quintuplet Cluster) 4,000,000 −11.7[11] 25,000
R136a3 (in LMC) 3,802,000 −11.6 160,000 12.97
R136a6 (in LMC) 3,311,000 −11.5 165,000 13.35
G0.070+0.025 3,300,000 −11.5[8] 26,000
Var A-1 (in M31) 3,200,000 −11.5[12] 2,450,000
Peony Star (WR 102ka) 3,200,000 −11.5 26,100
VFTS 682 (in LMC) 3,200,000 −11.5 160,000 16.1
WR 42e 3,200,000 −11.5[13][lower-alpha 6] 25,000 14.53
BAT99-33 (R99 in LMC) 3,200,000 −11.4[7] 160,000 11.45
LSS 4067 3,000,000 −11.4[14] 8,200 11.64
NGC 3603-B 2,900,000 −11.3[9] 24,000 11.33
G0.059-0.068 2,880,000 −11.4[8] 26,000
R136a4 (in LMC) 2,884,000 −11.3 160,000 13.96
WR 102hb 2,600,000 −11.3[15] 26,000
AFGL 2298[lower-alpha 7] 2,500,000 −11.25[3] 33,000
Melnick 42 (in LMC) 2,500,000 −11.25 160,000 12.8
WR 102ea 2,500,000 −11.25[15] 26,000
WR 85 2,500,000 −11.25[2] 15,300 10.03
BAT99-117 (R146 in LMC) 2,500,000 −11.2[7] 160,000 13.116
NGC 3603-A1a 2,500,000 −11.2[9] 24,000 11.18 (combined A1a + A1b)
LHO 146 2,500,000 −11.2 26,000 8.7
Var 83 (in M33) 2,240,000 −11.1[16] 3,000,000 16.40
WR 158 2,200,000 −11.1[2] 26,000 11.24
Arches-F6 2,300,000 −11.1 25,000
Arches-F9 2,300,000 −11.1 25,000
HD 5980A[lower-alpha 8] (in SMC) 2,200,000 −11.1[17] 200,000 11.7
WR 24 (in Carina Nebula) 2,200,000 −11.1[2] 8,200 6.48
HDE 269810 (in LMC) 2,200,000 −11.1[18] 170,000 12.28
Cygnus OB2 #516 2,200,000 −11.1 5000
BAT99-96 (in LMC) 2,200,000 −11.1[7] 160,000 13.76
G0.058+0.014 2,140,000 −11.1[8] 26,000
R136a5 (in LMC) 2,089,000 −11.0 165,000 13.71
LBV 1806-20 2,000,000 −11.0 38,700
Arches-F4 2,000,000 −11.0 25,000
WR 82 2,000,000 −11.0[2] 17,200 11.55
WR 131 2,000,000 −11.0[2] 38,600 12.08
WR 147[lower-alpha 9] 2,000,000 −11.0[2] 2,100 14.89
Arches-F7 2,000,000 −11.0 25,000
Arches-F1 2,000,000 −11.0 25,000
V429 Car A (WR 22; in Carina Nebula) 2,000,000 −11.0 8,200 6.42
R136b (in LMC) 1,995,000 −11.0 165,000 13.24
G0.114+0.021 1,950,000 −11.0[8] 26,000
R136a8 (in LMC) 1,905,000 −10.9 165,000 14.42
Cygnus OB2 #12 1,900,000 −10.9[19] 5000 11.4
WR 31a 1,820,000 −10.9 26,000 10.85
Wray 17-96 1,800,000 −10.9[20] 15,000 17.8
V2180 Cyg (=WR 130) 1,800,000 −10.9[2] 8,800 12.14
HD 5980B (in SMC) 1,800,000 −10.9[17] 200,000 11.9
V4650 Sgr 1,800,000 −10.9[21] 25,000
VFTS 506 (in LMC) 1,750,000 −10.9[22] 160,000 13.31
VFTS 16 (LMC) 1,700,000 −10.8[22] 160,000 13.55
Cygnus OB2-#7 1,700,000 −10.8 5000 12.7
BAT99-122 (R147 in LMC) 1,700,000 −10.7[7] 160,000 12.75
Arches-F12 1,600,000 −10.8 25,000
AF Andromedae (in M31) 1,600,000 −10.8[16] 2,500,000  
LHO 110 1,600,000 −10.8[15] 26,000
V378 Vel (=WR 12) 1,600,000 −10.75[2] 16,500 10.78
Pistol Star 1,600,000 −10.75 25,000
WR 78 1,600,000 −10.75[2] 6,500 6.49
WR 89 1,600,000 −10.75[2] 9,400 11.02
WR 107 1,600,000 −10.75[2] 13,400 14.1
WR 148 1,600,000 −10.75[2] 27,100 10.3
HD 93129A (in Carina Nebula)[lower-alpha 10] 1,500,000 −11.25 7,500 6.97 (combined A+B)
WR 102i 1,500,000 −10.7[15] 26,000
NGC 3603-A1b 1,500,000 −10.6[9] 24,000 11.18 (combined A1a + A1b)
VFTS 621 (in LMC) 1,400,000 −10.6[22] 160,000 15.39
Arches-F15 1,400,000 −10.6 25,000
LHO 100 1,400,000 −10.6 26,000 9.4
AB8A (in SMC) 1,400,000 −10.6[17] 200,000 12.9 (combined)
V396 Carinae (WR 16; in Carina Nebula) 1,400,000 −10.6[2] 5,000 8.34
WR 108 1,400,000 −10.6[2] 18,300 9.89
WR 66 1,400,000 −10.6[2] 10,700 11.34
Cygnus OB2 #771 1,400,000 −10.6 5000
R126 (in LMC) 1,400,000 −10.6 160,000 10.91
V729 Cyg A 1,400,000 −10.6 5000
BAT99-100 (R134 in LMC) 1,400,000 −10.5[7] 160,000 12.02
Tr 27-27 1,350,000 −10.5[14] 8,200  
WR 87 1,300,000 −10.5[2] 9,400 11.95
Arches-F3 1,300,000 −10.5 25,000
Arches-F8 1,300,000 −10.5 25,000
WR 156 1,300,000 −10.5[2] 11,700 11.01
R139 A (in LMC) 1,300,000 −10.5[23] 160,000 12.0 (combined)
V729 Cygni B 1,300,000 −10.5 5000
HD 50064 1,300,000 −10.5[24] 9,500 8.21
VFTS 259 (in LMC) 1,250,000 −10.5[22] 160,000 13.65
WR 102d[15] 1,200,000 −10.4 26,000 10.5
LHO 77 1,200,000 −10.4 26,000 9.6
AB7A 1,200,000 −10.4 197,000 13.016
Arches-F28 1,170,000 −10.4 25,000
G0.121-0.099 1,150,000 −10.4[8] 26,000
BAT99-104 (in LMC) 1,100,000 −10.4[7] 160,000 12.5
V385 Carinae (WR 40; in Carina Nebula) 1,100,000 −10.4[2] 7,400 7.85
V1402 Aquilae (=WR 123) 1,100,000 −10.4[2] 19,500 11.1
Arches-F18 1,100,000 −10.4 25,000
Cygnus OB2-#8B 1,100,000 −10.4 5000 12.7
Cygnus OB2-#10 1,100,000 −10.4 5000 12.7
Cygnus OB2-#22 1,100,000 −10.4 5000 12.7
Var B (in M33) 1,100,000 −10.4[16] 3,000,000  
HD 93403A 1,050,000 10,000 7.3
68 Cygni A 1,050,000 −10.3[25] 4600 4.98 to 5.09
HD 93250 (in Carina Nebula) 1,038,978 −10.3[14] 7,500 7.50
BAT99-94 (R135 in LMC) 1,000,000 −10.3[26] 160,000 14.52
AG Carinae 1,000,000 −10.3[27] 6000 5.7 to 9.0
Arches-F2 1,000,000 −10.25 25,000
BAT99-68 (in LMC) 1,000,000 −10.25[7] 160,000 12.4
Arches-F14 1,000,000 −10.25 25,000
V460 Scuti (=WR 116) 1,000,000 −10.25[2] 8,100 13.38
QR Sge (=WR 124) 1,000,000 −10.25[2] 11,000 11.5
S Doradus (in LMC) 1,000,000 −10.25 169,000 8.6 to 11.5 (B)
The following naked-eye stars are listed for the purpose of comparison.
P Cygni 610,000 −9.7 5,900 4.8
ρ Cas 550,000 −9.6 12,000 4.1 to 6.2
VY CMa 450,000 −9.4[28] 4900 6.5 to 9.6
ε Ori 380,000 −9.2 1300 1.70
ζ Pup 360,000 −9.0 1090 2.21
RW Cep 350,000 −9.11 11,500 6.52
μ Cep (the Garnet Star) 340,000 −9.08 1900 4.04
VV Cep A 315,000 −9.0 2400 4.91
Plaskett's Star A 224,000 −8.6 6600 6.06 (A + B)
θ1 Ori C 220,000 −8.6 1500 5.13
Deneb 196,000 −8.38[29] 2600 1.25
Betelgeuse 135,000 −8.24[30][31] 643 0.58
Rigel 117,490 −7.84 860 0.12
Antares 66,000 −7.2 600 0.92
Canopus 12,900 −5.53 310 −0.62
Polaris 2,200 −3.6 433 1.97
Aldebaran 350 −0.63 65 0.85
Arcturus 210 −0.31 37 −0.04
Capella 78.5 0.4 42 0.08
Vega 37 0.58 25 0.00
Sirius 25.4 1.4 8.6 −1.46
α Centauri A 1.519 4.38 4.4 −0.01
Sun 1.00 4.83 0 −26.74
  1. ↑ 208 day binary
  2. ↑ Luminous Blue Variable in external galaxy NGC 2363, that appears to be undergoing a "great outburst" like eta Carinae but less luminous.
  3. ↑ Identified as a binary system, or possibly three stars. The secondary is also luminous at around 1,000,000 times the Sun, but almost completely swamped by the primary.
  4. ↑ Suspected as binary from extreme X-ray luminosity and variable radial velocity.
  5. ↑ Binary system containing two luminous WNh stars.
  6. ↑ The paper mistakenly lists the blometric magnitude as −10.5 insead of −11.5.
  7. ↑ Luminous Blue Variable, peak luminosity shown.
  8. ↑ Variable, luminosity was five times higher at outburst in 1994.
  9. ↑ This is a binary system but the secondary is much less luminous than the primary
  10. ↑ This is a known binary with two fairly similar components, but the exact details of each star are not clear. Although the luminosity of the two combined is around 2,500,000, the primary is most likely nearer 1,500,000 and the secondary about 1,000,000.

Note that even the most luminous stars are much less luminous than the more luminous persistent extragalactic objects, such as quasars. For example, 3C 273 has an average apparent magnitude of 12.8 (when observing with a telescope), but an absolute magnitude of −26.7. If this object were 10 parsecs away from Earth it would appear nearly as bright in the sky as the Sun (apparent magnitude −26.74). This quasar's luminosity is, therefore, about 2 trillion (1012) times that of the Sun, or about 100 times that of the total light of average large galaxies like our Milky Way. (Note that quasars often vary somewhat in luminosity.)

In terms of gamma rays, a magnetar (type of neutron star) called SGR 1806-20, had an extreme burst reach Earth on 27 December 2004. It was the brightest event known to have impacted this planet from an origin outside the Solar System; if these gamma rays were visible, with an absolute magnitude of approx. −29, it would be brighter than the Sun (as measured by the Swift spacecraft).

The Gamma-ray burst GRB 971214 measured in 1998 was at the time thought to be the most energetic event in the observable universe, with the equivalent energy of several hundred supernovae. Later studies pointed out that the energy was probably the energy of one supernova which had been "beamed" towards Earth by the geometry of a relativistic jet.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 22.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Vizier catalog entry
  26. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  27. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  28. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  29. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. "Earlier data had yielded a luminosity of 54,000 L☉ with a radius of 108 R☉"
  30. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  31. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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