Alpha Centauri

American  

noun

1. Astronomy.  a triple-star system that is the brightest celestial object in the constellation Centaurus.

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Alpha Centauri Scientific  

/ ăl′fəsĕn-tôr′ē /

1. A triple star system in the constellation Centaurus that is the third brightest star in the night sky, with an apparent magnitude of −0.27, and the star nearest to Earth, at a distance of about 4.2 light-years. The two brighter stars, Alpha Centauri A and B, form a binary star system, which is orbited by Proxima Centauri, a smaller, dimmer star.

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Etymology

Origin of Alpha Centauri

< New Latin: Alpha of Centaurus

Example Sentences

The signs were found in the star system Alpha Centauri by the powerful James Webb Space Telescope.

From BBC

Alpha Centauri encompasses the closest star system to Earth and is more than four light-years away.

From BBC

By the way, that’s not me saying that I think the final answer is aliens visiting from Alpha Centauri.

From Los Angeles Times

The group became stranded on a distant planet after their ship, the Jupiter 2, went off course en route to colonize a planet in the Alpha Centauri system.

From Los Angeles Times

In the opening hours of the role-playing video game, it’s possible to land your spaceship on Earth’s moon or zip 16 light-years to Alpha Centauri.

From New York Times