Every night, the sky comes alive with light, as ancient giants, blazing beacons, and cosmic neighbors illuminate night from every corner of the universe. Among the thousands of visible stars, a select few shine brighter than the rest. These stars aren’t just brighter by chance; they’re either close to Earth, unusually large, or fantastically luminous (sometimes even all three).
Some of the stars on this list are incredibly close to us, while others are hundreds of light-years away. For reference, one light-year is the distance that light travels in a single year on Earth, which is about 5.88 trillion miles (9.46 trillion km).
So, which of the stars in our night sky have the brightest luminosity? And what are some of the most interesting things about them? Click through this gallery to find out.