The invention of technological gadgets has made the universe seemingly small. Today, however, people have learned that the sun is just a star and is seen as big because of its proximity to Earth, which is about 150 million km away.
The second closest star is the Proxima Centauri discovered by Robert Innes. It is 30 trillion km away, making the sun 250,000 times nearer. Proxima Centauri (also called Alpha Centauri C) is one of the three stars (the other two being Alpha Centauri A and Alpha Centauri B) of the triple star system, the Alpha Centauri. The Alpha Centauri is part of the constellation Centaurus and is considered the third brightest star. The three stars of the Alpha Centauri are considered as one since they are also seen as one. Alpha Centauri A and B are too close to each other without any clear distinction between them and C is not visible at all.
Alpha Centauri A is a type of yellow star while B is a yellow orange one. The Proxima Centauri, on the other hand, is a type of red dwarf star, which means that it is small in size and of low temperature. Because of this, you cannot see it with the naked eye despite its being second closest star to the Earth. You will need to use the aid of a powerful telescope to view it.