1. UY Scuti – The Largest Known Star
One of the biggest stars ever discovered, UY Scuti is a red supergiant in the constellation Scutum. If placed in our solar system, it would extend beyond Jupiter’s orbit.
2. Betelgeuse – The Dying Supergiant
A red supergiant in Orion, Betelgeuse is nearing the end of its life and could go supernova within the next 100,000 years. It has been observed dimming unpredictably, sparking speculation about an imminent explosion.
3. VY Canis Majoris – The Colossal Supergiant
One of the largest known stars by volume, VY Canis Majoris is so big that if placed in the Sun’s position, it would engulf the orbits of Saturn and beyond.
4. Sirius A & B – The Brightest Star in the Night Sky
Sirius, also called the Dog Star, is the brightest star visible from Earth. It has a white dwarf companion (Sirius B), making it one of the most famous binary systems.
5. RW Cephei – The Orange Giant
A hypergiant star with an intense orange glow, RW Cephei is another enormous and unstable star that may eventually collapse into a black hole.
6. Tabby’s Star (KIC 8462852) – The Mysterious Dimming Star
This star has exhibited strange, unpredictable dimming patterns that some have speculated could be due to an alien megastructure, though the most accepted explanation involves large dust clouds.
7. R136a1 – The Most Massive Known Star
Located in the Large Magellanic Cloud, R136a1 is a Wolf-Rayet star with an astonishing mass over 250 times that of the Sun, making it one of the most extreme stars in existence.
8. PSR B1257+12 – The Pulsar with Exoplanets
This pulsar star (a rapidly rotating neutron star) was the first to be discovered with planets orbiting it, proving that planets can exist even around dead stars.
9. La Superba (Y Canum Venaticorum) – The Ruby Red Carbon Star
A deep red carbon star, La Superba is one of the most strikingly colorful stars in the sky and is a favorite target for amateur astronomers.
10. Proxima Centauri – Our Closest Neighbor
The nearest star to the Sun, Proxima Centauri is a red dwarf just 4.24 light-years away and is known for having a potentially habitable exoplanet, Proxima b.